Lower Secondary
Computing

My passion for computing began when I received my first computer (Sinclair ZX81) and was transfixed with creating coding solutions to problems. I continued my passion through my education and graduated from Kingston University with BSc (Hons) in Computer Science.

Prior to teaching, I worked in the IT industry. During this time, in addition to working in the “real” IT world, I gained significant experience in a variety of IT specialist skills, including Programming, Systems Analysis and Design and Databases. Using this experience, I have been able to make lessons more realistic by illustrating with real life examples.

I currently work as Subject Lead for Computer Science & IT for a school in the South East of England. I have shared my passion for Computer Science with my students for the past 16 years. I believe they build the future, and the skills they develop studying Computer Science & IT provide a good foundation in all occupations.

In addition to teaching in school, I contract for several exam boards as an examiner and moderator for BTEC, GCSE and A Level. These roles support my teaching as they provide me with a good insight into how to achieve higher grades in exam papers and programming projects.

In my spare time, I run the school ski club, Geek Club, and I am a verifier for the Duke of Edinburgh award scheme. I enjoy spending time with my family and our dogs.

I am very excited to be part of the Wolsey Hall Oxford Team; a positive learning experience is the foundation of a happy, successful life, and I am extremely privileged to be able to help guide their journey. I pride myself on giving my full care, attention and enthusiasm to my students.

I gained my degree with joint honours in Computer Networking and Business IT, and started my career as a Data Analyst. I then moved into an Information Technology Analyst role for a few years. In 2010 I travelled to Kenya, where I spent five years working with an entrepreneur and created a successful business. It was in Kenya, where I helped young people with computer skills that I realised my love for teaching. I returned to England, enrolled myself into a teaching programme with Warwick University and graduated with a PGCE.

As a Computer Science teacher for five years, I have trained a variety of students to achieve academic excellence and confidence in their computer and programming skills. I teach many programming languages, including Python, VB.net and Javascript. The current subject content within computing is challenging and interesting, and when taught well gives students problem solving skills that can be applied to any field of academic study.

As a part of my role as a Computer Science teacher, I also train and support other teachers in the subject. To help develop the programme, I have created and shared many resources online. I focus on the curriculum, developing ways of helping my students to flourish, and many of my lessons draw on my previous industrial experience. Having this experience allows me to relate to ‘market’ requirements and enables me to design relevant lessons. My lessons are planned to ensure that I deploy a range of teaching strategies and include a variety of activities. I provide my students with constructive feedback so they can improve and aim high.

In my spare time, I run an after-school hockey club, a cyber-discovery club (students learn cyber programming techniques), and I assist in the duke of Edinburgh award scheme. I enjoy hiking, cycling and travelling.

I look forward to sharing my knowledge and experience with my students.

I started my career in industry, working for a company that built bespoke computers for clients as it was cheaper to build computers than buy them at that particular stage in time. I was interested in education and therefore decided to apply for a Graduate Training Programme. Since then, I have been teaching for over 13 years and have seen the subject of ICT/Computing evolve.

I taught in my first training school for ten years and became Second in Department after a successful appointment. I thoroughly enjoyed the transition and was passionate about progressing my understanding/knowledge of the journey from within education. After a year in post, I had the opportunity to move abroad and teach in Dubai. This was a wonderful experience, and as I had my 3-year-old daughter with me, she was also able to experience education abroad in the scorching sun. I taught KS4 & 5 Computing at a GEMS foundation school that ran the British Curriculum. A year later, I returned to the UK and re-integrated into the UK education system.

I am currently working as Curriculum Lead for Technology and IT within a school in the North of England and love what I do, with the varying number of subjects I manage. I teach KS3 Computing & Technology, KS4 Computer Science, and have also taught KS4 Business Studies. I really enjoy learning about the diverse cultures our various students are from, many from the local area and others from the rest of the world. Managing a variety of subjects gives me the chance to be in touch with my creative flair as well as my main focus of Computing.

My spare time is usually spent with my daughter, who is now eight years old and is highly creative, just like her mum. We enjoy various activities, such as painting, drawing, string art, and stitching/sewing. We love to hike and enjoy the views, which developed a passion for photography and capturing the scenes and moments and learning to use a DSLR Camera I purchased. I love to read all sorts of books; however, my favourite would be anything Sci-fi, fantasy or magic related.

I am looking forward to meeting new students and parents from different parts of the world and exploring the IT infrastructure that we live in.

I am a qualified and experienced Computer Science teacher, having taught in South London and Oxfordshire as Head of a Successful Computer Science department. I have also led Computer Science for a trust of 50 schools at Key Stage 3, 4 and 5 (Secondary Level) as well as leading outreach work with Primary students.

Outside of teaching, I have collaborated on some of the most popular GCSE and A level computing textbooks. I have also consulted and delivered training for AQA, Hodder, Dubai College, the British Computer Society, Philip Allan, ZigZag, to name but a few.

I am also conducting research into the use of Virtual Reality with the Open University. Amongst other projects, I have presented at several conferences and was recently contracted to write a book on VR in Education for Routledge.

I am passionate about Computer Science, and I love sharing that passion with learners. I believe the skills we develop studying Computer Science, problem solving and decomposition, can help us in all subjects and all walks of life. I have supported students to progress to some of the top universities and computing related courses, and on to computing related careers. Their success has been a fantastic reward.

Outside of education, I still enjoy problem solving and programming for enjoyment. I cycle regularly and hike in the Lake District. I enjoy reading, with a particular penchant for Terry Pratchett and Tom Sharpe. I enjoy the occasional play on Elite Dangerous (in VR, obviously) and spending time with my young family.

I have over twenty years of experience in education, teaching Computing, Computer Science, Information Technology, and Cambridge Global Perspectives. Before entering the classroom, I worked in the corporate IT world as a Systems Engineer for companies like Barclays and IBM, giving me a solid foundation in real-world industry practices. After returning to university to complete my BEd Honours degree, I spent over a decade teaching in high schools in my native South Africa. During that time, I established the Computer Science departments at two different schools and drove digital transformation as a Google Certified Educator.

More recently, I have channelled my passion for accessible learning into digital content and publishing. I run the educational YouTube channel GameDev Journey, which has over 70,000 subscribers, and I am the author of two books, Godot 4 for Beginners and Godot 4 Best Practices, focusing on game development, robust software architecture, and professional workflows.

Whether I am teaching programming or Global Perspectives, my goal is to help students connect logical thinking with creativity to solve complex problems. In Computer Science, this comes alive when creating computer games. In Global Perspectives, we apply these same critical skills, research, analysis, evaluation, and collaboration, to real-world challenges. This exciting cross-curricular subject empowers students to explore vital topics ranging from the digital world and technological innovation to climate change, globalisation, and social inclusion. Developing these critical reflection skills early on gives younger learners a tremendous advantage as they progress in their studies and navigate the modern world.

Today, digital literacy and global awareness are essential, and everyone deserves to be fluent in them. Not everyone grasps complex concepts on the first try, but my hands-on, supportive approach ensures that students always have the guidance they need. I have helped many students understand, practise, and significantly improve their results, and I am dedicated to helping you do the same.

I moved to the UK with my family in October 2020 and thoroughly enjoy living here. When I am not helping students, coding, or writing, I love walking our dog, Honey, cycling, and spending quality time with my family.