Dr Jill Cowie is a Lecturer for the Secondary PGCE (Science) with particular responsibility for Chemistry. She joined the School in 2010. Prior to working in Higher Education she taught Science for ten years in two secondary schools in West Yorkshire, and was both Head of Chemistry and an AST.

From 2007 to 2010 Jill taught in two A-level Centres attached to prestigious Chinese High Schools in Jiangsu Province, P.R. China. These centres offered senior Chinese students an alternative examination route; making it easier for them to undertake their university studies predominantly in the USA and UK. During this period she acted as Chemistry subject leader for eleven such centres throughout China. She also developed, in conjunction with the University of Warwick Institute of Education, one of the first UK-style secondary teacher training programmes for Chinese nationals.

Jill has a B.Sc. (Hons.) and a Ph.D.in Chemistry from the University of Edinburgh and a M.Sc. in Chemistry from the University of Aberdeen.

“Teachers open the door, but you must enter by yourself.” Chinese proverb

Jill is committed to the idea that a good teacher is ever willing to learn, and is flexible to trying new approaches. During her time in the classroom, both in the UK and China, she has witnessed first-hand the substantial learning gains that can be achieved by a healthy shift from predominantly teacher-directed to more student-centred learning. Once sceptical, she is now a firm advocate of Assessment for Learning strategies and the role of group work in planning effective lessons. She, like many others, believes that one of the most important skills for a teacher to master is the ability to ask good questions.