Last night we held our annual Tutor of the Year Awards to recognise the hard work of our academic team over the past 12 months.
The tutors are the go-to people when our students have questions about their course or assignments to be marked. They are absolutely key to our students’ success, and we’re constantly impressed with the feedback and praise they receive from our learners. That’s why we feel it is so important to celebrate the help and support they provide.
The winning tutors are selected by a combination of student votes on the Virtual Learning Community (VLC) and feedback from the faculty managers...who consistently tell us how hard it is to choose just one candidate from within their team.
The awards were part of our annual tutor conference, during which we all get together to talk about the past year and our plans for the coming 12 months. After dinner and a glass of wine last night, we gathered to present the five awards: one for the most deserving tutor in each of our four faculties, followed by the prize for our overall Tutor of the Year 2011.
And our faculty winners were.....
Accountancy: Paul Buzzard
This has been a particularly busy year for our accounting tutors due to recent changes in the AAT syllabus, which has meant the introduction of new course materials and exams. In a team of incredibly hard-working people, Paul still stood out thanks to his consistent dedication and positive attitude. He has managed the extra workload associated with these changes, while continuing to provide unfailing support to his students during this transitional period. This is actually the second time Paul has won this accolade, making him the only Home Learning College to win twice since the awards were introduced a few years ago.
Bookkeeping: Kirsten Gamble.
Kirsten is loved by students and colleagues alike for her ability to handle her duties with a positive and supportive attitude. In addition to assisting her students, Kirsten worked closely with her faculty manager to update course materials and bring on board a series of new mock exams, which mean that students are better prepared when it comes to the big day. In addition to being our Bookkeeping Tutor of the Year, Kirsten has also been nominated as Tutor of the Year in this year’s ICB Luca awards, so we’ll find out next Thursday whether she’s won. Good luck, Kirsten!
Vocational and Business Studies: Barbara Ashford
Barbara joined Home Learning College after many years spent teaching childcare courses in her local further education college. Since becoming part of our VBS team, Barbara has played a key role in developing and launching our NCFE childcare courses, which are seen as the industry gold standard. In total she tutors three courses, managing her time effectively across each. She is also very active on our VLC, where she offers advice to students and ensures that the information provided is maintained and updated. All of this makes her a real asset to the faculty and a worthy winner of this VBS faculty award.
IT: Kevin Aves
Kevin receives this award posthumously after sadly passing away earlier this year. As one of our full time Internet and web design tutors, Kevin was a professional and reliable member of the team, and he is greatly missed by his students and team mates. At his family’s request, Home Learning College is dedicating Kevin’s £250 prize money to Saint Catherine’s Hospice in Scarborough as thanks for the care and support they provided at a difficult time. The announcement of Kevin’s award brought a tear to more than one eye last night and provided an opportunity to collectively share positive thoughts of his time with us. We wish his family all the best for the future.
Following the presentation of the four faculty awards, it was time for the big moment and the announcement of our overall Tutor of the Year 2011, which on this occasion went to Paul Buzzard, adding another trophy to his ever-growing collection.
Once again, we’d like to thank all our tutors for their passion and commitment, along with our students who took the time to vote for their favourite tutor on the VLC. We’re already looking forward to doing it again next year, so don’t forget to get involved!