Amy Hanna, Head of English at Ark Academy in Wembley, has won an £11,000 prize to fund a fantastic idea that has ignited her students’ passion for English. Amy was awarded the prize by judges of the Let Teachers SHINE competition. This funding will help get her educational YouTube project off the ground and launch it to a wider audience of students.
Teachers from across the country were invited to submit their ideas for the competition, which aims to benefit disadvantaged students and improve their educational achievement in literacy, numeracy and/or science. The competition is run by the education charity, SHINE, and supported by Capita SIMS and the Tes.
The annual competition aims to find the next big idea in schools and this year received 147 applications from teachers across the country. Ten projects were chosen for their use of innovative teaching strategies to help children from low income households reach their full potential.
Amy said, “Grammar can affect a student’s written communication, confidence and chances across the curriculum. My YouTube channel, Miss Hanna Loves Grammar, supports all key stage 3 students and is particularly useful for students who are reading at an age below their peers. With this funding I'll be creating 150 engaging videos, covering basic grammar rules and employing flipped learning techniques to create more opportunities for the deliberate practice of grammar.”
A year 7 student in Amy's class said, "The videos are really useful, as they break English down. And if you don’t get it first time you can watch it again. It makes sense in the 21st century – and we love it!"
The winners were announced at an awards presentation held at the Capita SIMS annual conference last week. The project will be run as a year-long pilot from September 2017 to September 2018. Further funding will be available for the most successful schemes.
Phil Neal, director at Capita SIMS, said, “Once again I have been very impressed by the standard and quality of the entries. Each and every winner has shown innovation and a dedication to improving attainment for every pupil. Congratulations to all the winners!”
Clare Gilhooly, CEO of SHINE, added, “Every year the Let Teachers SHINE competition impresses upon me the tireless efforts of teachers from across the country. The 10 finalists are a testament to the difference teachers make in the lives of children and young people, and SHINE looks forward to working with them to develop their winning ideas.”
You can subscribe to Amy's YouTube channel here.