At Havant & South Downs College, we have a number of highly skilled, dedicated and passionate teaching staff. These lecturers go above and beyond to help our students reach their full potential.
We want to shout about these integral members of our HSDC community, so every month we will be finding out about the people behind our teaching excellence with our ‘Staff in the Spotlight’ feature.
Here is Will Bowerman.
Name
Will Bowerman
Position at HSDC
Course Manager of A Level Creative Writing and GCSE English
How long have you worked at the College?
Four years
Why did you choose the subject that you teach?
I loved studying English as an undergraduate and then Creative Writing as a Masters. I loved reading and creating stories alongside the analysis.
What was your journey/training before coming to HSDC?
Before I came to HSDC I worked at Chichester College for two years and in adult education for many years before that. My journey into Further Education teaching was a trial by fire!
I was teaching adult education for Creative Writing and English for many years and, at the time, I was almost finished my PGCE at Chichester College, but I was not working there. One day, I got a phone call on a late Friday afternoon asking me to come and see the Vice-Principal of the College. I was a bit confused but went to see her.
She invited me in, laid a timetable in front of me and said that they had an urgent A Level staffing shortage and needed a Lecturer for Creative Writing immediately. I’d been recommended by my PGCE lecturers, so they asked me if I could start teaching classes from Monday morning! My route into FE was kind of immediate!
Do you practice the subject you teach outside of work? Any subject-related interests?
I spent a number of years writing stories, screenplays and plays – one was performed at Bournemouth Arts Institute – as well as editing and copywriting. Now I devote most of my time to education and studying a Master’s in Education at the University of Chichester.
What is the highlight of your role at HSDC?
Highlights are individual student successes every year. You’ve seen the journey they’ve been on and it’s always the goal to see them succeed. A constant highlight is always the staff here at College. It’s a great place to work.
What kind of careers have your students gone on to do?
Students have moved into media careers, journalism, publishing and teaching.
What is something about your job that people don’t know about?
Being GCSE English Course Manager brings extraordinary demands and challenges. One thing people may not know about the job is just how much we try to integrate other course subject areas into our teaching when it’s appropriate and possible. All cross-College support to support and engage learners is most welcome!
What kind of opportunities are students offered on your course?
Our course is 100% exam-based so everything we do is focused on equipping the students with the skills they need to achieve this goal. We offer them support inside and outside of class in order to obtain their passing grade, such as 1:1 tutorials, online revision resources, A Level Mentors, support with reading for pleasure, competitions and our complete dedication to supporting their learning towards a pass.
What three words would your students use to describe you?
Motivated, determined and supportive!