Richard (Rik) Bennett

Senior Lecturer
My first appointment in this institution was in 1991. Initially I taught maths education but before long I joined a newly established department in the School of Education teaching Technology Education.

Overview

This exciting initiative was unique in that all BEd students were expected to take Technology as their second specialist subject. Technology in the National Curriculum in 1993 covered Design & Technology and Information Technology. Hence, we were exploring very new areas such as control technology and aspects of environmental education linked to global warming. 

In one module, students were required to work in local schools for half a day each week, teaching groups of children D&T and then reflecting on their experiences. We were at the forefront of Technology in Primary education in the UK and our students were among the most knowledgeable in the field.

When interest began to wane in Technology Education I developed my interests in IT (or ICT as it was later to become). I had already been involved in Primary IT as an advisory teacher, sharing my experiences with colleagues and becoming involved in a number of national projects. In 1996, I became the ICT co-ordinator for the School of Education which involved co-ordination of ICT across all programmes. 

Teaching

As indicated above, I have been involved in teaching Maths Education, Design & Technology and ICT Education courses. I was also responsible for the original PDE programme in Year 1 of the B.Ed. and wrote the first Education Studies programme delivered by the School of Education. 

Prior to that, I have been a primary teacher, a deputy head, a headteacher, an advisory teacher (both ICT and generalist), a Head of Department, a Head of a maths Education Centre, a Programme Leader, the Head of Teacher Training and for a while acted as an Associate Dean. I am constantly seeking new challenges and never like to feel complacent. Hence, the longest period of time I have spent doing the same job has been four years.

I have recently become a member of the Faculty's CPD Team and become involved in developing resources, materials and activities to support mentoring and coaching. To this end I have developed an online resource to support mentoring which makes extensive use of video.

Postgraduate Supervision I have recently been supervising a project on ICT in Education, and would welcome applications for postgraduate supervision in any aspect of ICT Education or e-learning. With my interests in mentoring and coaching, I would also be interested in supporting anyone who wishes to extend their knowledge and understanding in this area.

Academic Programmes:

Undergraduate:
  • B.Ed. (Primary), B.Ed (Early years), CPD
Postgraduate
  • PGCE (Primary), PGCE (Early Years), PGCE (Secondary), M.Ed.,
CPD
  • School-based and university based projects and modules in mentoring and coaching, ICT and experiential learning

In 2000, I also took on the role of Learning Teaching and Assessment Co-ordinator for the School which gave me responsibility for supporting the development of teaching and learning across the programmes.

Research

Those involved in teacher training courses will tell you that finding time for research is quite difficult. I have however been able to write five books on ICT, contributed to three others and had a number of articles published in various journals and the Times Educational Supplement. Most of these have been related to the development of children's ICT capabilities in primary or early years educational settings. 

A key element of my philosophy for ICT in education is the importance of embedding ICT development into meaningful contexts. For me, the value of ICT comes in using it as a tool to achieve other outcomes. For example, communicating information to a particular audience using the most appropriate means. This might be through text (as in this case), text and images, sound, sound and images (eg video), multimedia and so on. 

It's therefore important to give children skills, not only in being able to do the techie stuff of knowing how to handle a word processor, DTP programme or photo editing package, but knowing which package to use for what, when to use an image to reinforce a message and what makes an effective video presentation. This cannot be achieved through ICT lessons which have the sole purpose of teaching ICT skills. It can only be achieved by giving children interesting, involving and meaningful activities with a real purpose.

Published work

In 1997, I wrote my first book on IT in Key Stage 1 and in the intervening years became more and more involved in ICT Education in Primary Education. 

Useful links

Who to contact

  • Faculty of Education and Children's Services

    T:
    01244 511596
    education@chester.ac.uk

  • Richard (Rik) Bennett, Senior Lecturer / Learning, Teaching and Assessment Co-ordinator

    T:
    01244 511011
    F:
    01244 511370
    bennett@chester.ac.uk