New president of education division
Simon Lancaster talks about his experiences in the role so far, as well as plans for the future
Dear fellow educators and chemists,
At the RSC AGM, in July, I officially began my term as President of the Education Division (ED) and chairmanship of the Education Division Council (EDC). I should begin by thanking my predecessor, Professor Gareth Price, who has provided outstanding service to the RSC and its members, guiding us through tumultuous change at many levels of the education system. On a personal level, he has been a great role model and a generous mentor to me and I know I will continue to depend upon his sage wisdom in the future.
The ED aims to provide a voice for members who are educators or have an interest in education, and serves as an umbrella for the education-focused interest groups of the RSC: Secondary and Further Education (SaFE); Chemistry Education Research Group (CERG); Education Techniques Group (ETG) and Tertiary Education Group (TEG).
The role of the EDC is to bring together the various education groups, to encourage/facilitate collaboration, and to advise the Education Directorate of the RSC, led by Sarah Robertson, in formulating RSC education policy and programmes.
For us to succeed in best representing our members we need to ensure that all potentially interested parties know of, and contribute to, our activities. Yet we know that not all educators within the RSC membership have signed up as a member of the Education Division. If this describes you, please join us.
If you are a member of the education division, are you a member of one or more of the interest groups? You can do this now by contacting the membership team or by ticking the appropriate boxes on your membership renewal form that will be sent out in November.
We plan to start a short, termly newsletter in which we can share with you the highlights of Education Division and EDC business and advance notice of upcoming events that you will find of interest.
Since becoming President…
Despite the nominal summer holiday, August is a busy month in the RSC education calendar. I had the pleasure of attending the Variety in Chemistry Education conference (which we abbreviate to Variety, not the acronym) in York on 21st and 22nd. We were treated to innovations in lecture theatre and laboratory practice and outcomes from pedagogical research in chemistry education. My thanks to Glenn Hurst and the York organising team and TEG for putting the conference together. This was the largest Variety yet and it was great to see so many new members of this vibrant community. The keynote by RSC president Sir John Holman highlighted the importance of understanding and communication between the different levels of our education system and I am determined to make that one of the priorities of my term as President.
On 31 August, I presented Kristy Turner with the Schools Education Award. It was wonderful to be able to do so at the RSC trainee teacher scholars meeting at Burlington House. These outstanding new teachers were treated to Kristy’s very personal account of the difference she has made to many young lives as a Chemistry Teacher.
We all left inspired and invigorated. It is a privilege to be able to represent the ED at these award ceremonies and I hope to meet many of you as our prize winners receive their awards on their lecture tours up and down the country. It is not too early to start thinking who you are going to nominate for our award portfolio this year.
2018 awards
So as the award cycle continues … we are inviting nominations for the following:
- Schools Education Award
- Higher Education Teaching Award
- Higher Education Technical Excellence Award
- Inspiration and Industry Award
- Education Award
We are keen to ensure that the awards reflect the diversity of our education community and welcome nominations from a wide range of specialisms, backgrounds, countries and communities.
Visit our awards pages for more information.
Education Division Priorities
In the Education Division, our overwhelming priority is to ensure that Education Division Council serves all our members. We are working with the chairs of our respective member groups to facilitate communication and foster further collaboration. Look out for members of EDC at upcoming education events across the British Isles. And when you find one, tell us what you are looking for from your RSC division!
Simon Lancaster
President, Education Division
Variety in Chemistry Education conference
Tell us your story
If you've been involved in an event or activity, or just have an interesting story to tell, we want to hear from you! Please get in touch with us by email.
Press office
- Tel:
- +44 (0) 20 7440 3351
- Email:
- Send us an email