UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology staff honoured at the UCL Education Awards 2021

The Education Awards recognise and celebrate the achievements of staff and students, and their contributions to our learning community, through Academic Representative of the Year; UCL Arena/Higher Education Academy Fellowships; UCL Education Awards; and Student Choice Awards.

Among the winners were :

Dr Tim Young, Course Co-Director of Clinical Neurology by Distance Learning at UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology (ION), winner of the ‘Education Success for all’ Provost Education Award

Dr Young won the award for excelling in his role over the last year of Covid-19. He has utilised his own experience in distance learning and passion for teaching to empower both students and educators. His educational reach has extended from important Institutional input with the major new ION Mark sheet to ION-wide recommendations for lecturers. Regionally he played a significant role in preparing critical care educators across London for the Covid-19 ‘second wave’ and built on this with national level contributions of educational tools for trainees via Health Education England.

At a national level, Dr Young has enhanced Advance HE’s support for student participation in the 2021 PTES. Internationally he has shown effective education for large companies and in support of medical schools in developing countries. Finally on a global scale, Dr Young has seized the opportunity to work closely with two global specialist medical societies to ascertain the educational needs of developing nations and then address this with his major current project for non-specialist doctors globally. Moreover, he has fulfilled his doctor’s role for the country against the pandemic, initially at the NHS Nightingale, then performing remote neurology clinics, and most recently as a doctor vaccinator.

Library Skills Team, winner of the Team Provost Education award for Outstanding response to teaching or support during the pandemic

This large team, co-ordinated most effectively by Angela Young, and including Kate Brunskill, Deputy Librarian, Queen Square Library, comprises many smaller teams and individuals from across Library Services, who took advantage of the new working environment to facilitate closer collaborative working and to work on co-ordinated efforts to ensure a positive learning experience of students.

The outcomes have been substantial, considering the experience of students and researchers at all stages, from enhanced induction for new students, to bespoke support for students undertaking dissertations as well as ongoing support for students at any level. Full consideration has been given to students in different circumstances and with differing needs, always ensuring accessibility, and a choice of asynchronous or synchronous learning opportunities, and group and individual support. The team has also shown a commitment to ensuring effectiveness and quality assurance of the teaching sessions and materials produced by the team, including getting feedback and input from students and processes of peer review, peer observation and reflection. 

Other ION staff members were shortlisted for awards:

• Dr Caroline Selai (Programme Co-Director, MSc Clinical Neuroscience and Brain and Mind Sciences) received a nomination in the Student Choice Awards 2021 for “Excellent Personal Tutoring”
• Dr Jen Agustus, Programme Director Dementia: Causes, Treatments and Research (Neuroscience) (MSc) received a nomination for an individual Provost Education award for  “Outstanding response to teaching and/or support during a pandemic” and a nomination in the Student Choice Awards 2021 for “Excellent Personal Tutoring”
• Dr Gita Ramdharry (Honorary Associate Professor, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology) received a nomination in the Student Choice Awards 2021 for “Outstanding research supervision”

Links

• Full list of winners and nominations
• Study at UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology