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The University of Southampton
Southampton Education School

A top honour for the Southampton Education School alumnus

Published: 1 November 2016
William Emeny with Gold Plato Award
Teacher of the year William Emeny with Gold Plato Award

Southampton Education School’s PGCE team were delighted to learn that last Saturday their alumnus William Emeny who teaches at Wyvern College, Fair Oak, picked up a top honour at the Pearson Teaching Awards, a ceremony celebrating the crème de la crème of the UK teaching profession. William was one of just ten teachers from across the country to win a prestigious Gold Plato Award, which was presented in front of an audience of hundreds at the Guildhall in London.

William Emeny was nominated for the accolade by pupils, parents and colleagues from Wyvern College. The ceremony was broadcast on BBC2 in the show Britain’s Classroom Heroes, where viewers were able to find out more about the inspirational work behind William award win.

William is the curriculum leader for mathematics at Wyvern College, and is seen as an inspirational teacher and an excellent role model to students, colleagues and all those involved in education. He has been praised for his ability to encourage every student to think like a mathematician, make the best progress and attain the highest standards they can.

He believes in the sharing of best practice and the numerous benefits of using ICT to enhance learning. To this end, William developed Numeracy Ninjas, a programme of work based on extensive research, and has made it freely available to schools and colleges worldwide. Developed in his own time, the programme has now gone viral in the mathematics world and is in use in thousands of schools across every continent in the world.

Hosted by the actor and comedian Hugh Dennis, star of ‘Outnumbered’ and ‘Mock the Week’, the ceremony also saw awards handed out across categories such as Excellence in Special Needs Education and Lifetime Achievement.

The Pearson Teaching Awards is an annual celebration of exceptional teachers and teaching. Founded in 1999 by Lord Puttnam, they recognise the life-changing impact of an inspirational teacher on the lives of the young people they teach.

Hugh Dennis, host of this year’s BBC Britain’s Classroom Heroes, said: “I am genuinely proud and honored to be hosting this year’s ceremony. The inspiration and support of my fantastic teachers got me to where I am today, and it’s great to be able to join in and celebrate other teachers’ incredible achievements as well.”

Rod Bristow, President of Pearson UK, said: “A huge congratulations to the 2016 Teaching Award winners. Pearson is so proud to sponsor this celebration - Great teaching makes the biggest difference to a child’s education and it’s incredibly important that we take this moment each year to recognize that".

Pearson is the world’s learning company, with expertise in educational courseware and assessment, and a range of teaching and learning services powered by technology

 

 

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