InspIrIng teAchers
And the winner is...
There were
around 600
nominations
for this year’s
Scottish Education Awards,
which recognise teacher
achievement across the
country. Sam Phipps has
been speaking to some of
the winners
otivation, flexibility
M
and an engaging manner
are among the obvious
qualities you might expect
in any outstanding teacher.
a willingness to bring in the
Daleks also helps.
iain Houston is just as happy to utilise Doctor Who’s
infamous foes in his physics lessons as he is to carry out
experiments dating back to edwardian times. but he
will never do either gratuitously.
He lavishes his imagination and experience on the
classroom in all kinds of unexpected ways, and his
appeal to pupils at St Joseph’s College in Dumfries is,
by all accounts, nothing short of magnetic.
about 600 nominations were received for all categories
of this year’s Scottish education awards, the winners
going on to represent Scotland at the UK teaching
awards in october. Mr Houston, who triumphed as
teacher of the year, is sanguine about his achievement.
“i was teaching the advanced Higher class this year,
so i made a big effort for it, but it didn’t occur to me that
i was doing anything unusual,” he said on hearing of his
award back in June.
“like most teachers, i sit there worrying that i’m not
doing it properly.”
in that case, maybe a little worry is no bad thing.
His headteacher, bernadette Jones, cannot speak highly
enough of what he brings to his lessons. Physics, Top teacher: Iain Houston, pictured
remember, is one of those “difficult” subjects that is in his classroom at St Joseph’s
supposedly struggling to hold its own against flashier College in Dumfries, scooped the
rivals in 21st century curriculums. Mr Houston also Teacher of the Year prize at this
teaches chemistry and biology to younger pupils. year’s Scottish Education Awards
Mrs Jones told SecEd: “you only have a captive
audience if you engage them, and iain will use any
way of hooking children in. if he’s talking about speed, conferencing with undergraduates in Japan and vindication from pupils as much as fellow teachers, He has also shown commitment to shaping the
distance and time he might use remote-controlled america, which has been a fascinating insight for those since they too take part in the nomination process and future of his subject through membership of the Scottish
Daleks. He will always bring things alive in some way, of our pupils who are going on to university.” judges listen to their views. Mathematical Council, and has worked for the Scottish
whether it’s light sabres or exploring the science of another thing he has explored is how to “market” elsewhere at this year’s awards, John MacKenzie, Qualifications authority for 15 years.
taking a penalty. and he invites in guest speakers: he’s pupils’ efforts in physics to the rest of the school. principal maths teacher at oban High for 30 years, over the last 25 years, Mr MacKenzie has also raised
brought in amputees to talk about bionic arms. Ms Jones continued: “He was saying to them: won Scotland’s lifetime achievement award. thousands of pounds which have enabled hundreds of
“i’ve taught in the same room as Mr Houston. He ‘there’s no point doing all this work and not telling Mr MacKenzie, who is due to retire next year, has local children with special needs to attend holidays with
would suggest ideas for me in terms of equipment and them’. So they kind of shrunk it down into marketing successfully steered the department through numerous their carers at lourdes.
so on, and sometimes he’d even take the first couple of and we displayed it to our staff.” education and curriculum changes, while exam results at the other end of the career spectrum, alice
minutes. He is an extremely good communicator.” Parents stop Mrs Jones in the street and tell her have consistently outperformed the national average. thompson of eastbank academy in Glasgow was
and if he is adept at using the latest technology how delighted they are that their children are in Mr He said: “When i heard i’d been nominated i was named Probationary teacher of the year for work that
to prove his point, including expensive digital Houston’s class. one aspect of this, she reckons, is overwhelmed and humbled that my colleagues had included organising a crime scene investigation for the
oscilloscopes, Mr Houston, 31, is also willing to travel that pupils of mixed behaviour and average ability chemistry club.
back in time. last year he found some dusty electro- rise to the occasion. He “always goes the extra mile”, “i applied to the british Science association for
magnetic apparatus in the school cupboards, which no particularly in helping children whose first language is a grant and that allowed us to do some work on
one had a clue how to use. it was about 100 years old. not english, and in return expects homework to be done forensic techniques,” she said. “We set up a fake
“i bought some old books which had pictures of the on time and a good standard of dress. crime scene. We had a mock murder trial and a lot
equipment. We’ve been able to give them a new lease but what about the other teachers? is there not a danger of different departments got involved. the maths
of life by showing students the old way of doing things, that an award of this kind can create envy and divisions? department were looking at the velocity and angles
then working up to more modern ways. after all, it is arguably an odd concept to single out one
‘
You only have a
captive audience if you
of blood spatter patterns and things like that. it was
“a lot of science these days involves black boxes individual among hundreds of worthy contenders.
engage them, and Iain
fantastic.”
where you put stuff in one end and get a measurement on the contrary, Mrs Jones is adamant that the Meanwhile, St ninian’s High in bishopbriggs, east
out, but with older equipment you get to see what’s process reflects well on the whole school.
will use any way of
Dunbartonshire, has followed last year’s UK teacher
going on inside. that can be very useful – we shouldn’t “this has come from the pupils – it’s not as if i of the year success (David Miller) with Scottish
discard something just because it’s old.” was picking them. His head of department wrote a
hooking children in
Headteacher of the year. Paul Mclaughlin took over
the twin pitfalls of secondary level science are nomination too. When we found out he was a finalist, the role five years ago and is widely credited with
“boring, dry stuff” on the one hand, and “gimmicks for we did think ‘how will the other teachers react?’ they transforming the school.
their own sake” on the other, Mr Houston told us. “i like got right behind him. but there’s always one. We had He told SecEd: “i feel great to have won this award
to aim for that balance where you have to think quite just one teacher who said we shouldn’t have the awards gone to the effort of doing that. So to win the award is but i don’t believe that it’s really for me – it’s for the
hard about how and why things are happening, but it’s system because it was unfair. wonderful. i’m even more humbled by it. ’ whole school. it is just amazing to be back again at such
fun at the same time. People are more likely to learn “otherwise, there’s a lot of spin-off in terms of our “My colleagues have always said networking is one an exciting event which is such a great celebration of
that way, and to remember stuff.” celebration of achievement. everyone realises, also, of my strengths, and if i come across an idea i think will teachers and teaching.”
originally from Kilmarnock, Mr Houston gained a that the science department is very effective as a team. be beneficial to our pupils then i’ll certainly pursue it to or to put it another way, the Scottish education
first class honours degree from Strathclyde University it’s not about one individual.” motivate our young people.” awards highlight how countless staff are not just doing
before going on to research at Glasgow University How much expectation is resting on the UK awards So inspirational has Mr MacKenzie been that two their jobs properly, they’re doing them spectacularly
and then the technical University of eindhoven in the ceremony in a couple of months? “it’s good that he’s of his former charges now work alongside him at the well. SecEd
netherlands. “it was alright,” he says of the latter, but recognised and anything else is a bonus. there’s a right argyll school.
it didn’t give him a fraction of the excitement he gets buzz about the place,” Mrs Jones replies. Mr MacKenzie started as a probationary teacher
Further information
from teaching. the Scottish education awards first took place in at St Columba’s in Gourock in 1972, and in the same to nominate for next year’s Scottish education awards,
However, his international experience is invaluable 2001, and are open to nominations from all publicly- year took up the post of assistant principal teacher of visit www.scottisheducationawards.org.uk
in the classroom. “He’s got links with people right funded schools, including secondary, primary, nursery mathematics there. He remained in that role for seven
across the world,” says Mrs Jones. “He’s done video and special schools. the accolades are indeed a years before moving to oban in 1979. • Sam Phipps is a freelance education journalist
SecEd • August 27 2009 
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