Teaching in the 21st century

Ian Menter, Emeritus Professor of Teacher Education at the University of Oxford, will deliver Leeds Beckett’s annual Winifred Mercier public lecture on Wednesday 9 March at the University’s Headingley Campus in recognition of the City of Leeds Training College's first female Vice-Principal, and feminist, Winifred Mercier.

As part of the Carnegie Conversations series sponsored by Frontrow Legal, Professor Menter will reflect on how little change has been made to the way teachers are educated (regardless of careful deliberation and research evidence) given that there is now almost universal recognition that ‘teaching matters’ and that the quality of teaching is crucial for social and economic development.

Speaking in defence of high quality teacher education, Professor Menter said:  "If we continue to see teaching as a profession of moral responsibility that seeks to ensure that every learner is educated in such a way as to make the most of opportunities that suit his or her dispositions, aspiration and needs, then we need teachers who are increasingly capable of making difficult judgements in complex situations, based on a clear and conscious set of values.”

An important annual event on the university calendar, the Winifred Mercier lecture commemorates the life and work of Winifred Mercier who, from 1913 to 1915, was Vice-Principal at the former City of Leeds Training College, one of Leeds Beckett University’s predecessor institutions.

Greatly respected for her intellect and passion, Winifred was not afraid to engage in public policy debates and ask questions of the government of the day.  A first-wave feminist, she encouraged her contemporaries to consider society as it was and as it could be, and deliberate on the role and function of education in building the social world.

Professor Lori Beckett, The Winifred Mercier Professor of Teacher Education at Leeds Beckett, commented: “The Winifred Mercier public lecture provides an opportunity to invite distinguished speakers to talk about the challenges that confront practitioners in teaching and teacher education.

“This year Professor Ian Menter challenges us to think seriously about the set of values that inform our professional practice, which are crucial especially when it comes to working in urban schools that serve local communities dealing with economic and social disadvantage.  No doubt this will fuel public and professional debates about the principles of ethicality that underpin teaching and teacher education in schools in the north of England. This is what drove Winifred Mercier one hundred years ago, so we take inspiration from our predecessors but also one of the preeminent spokespeople on education today.”

Previous to his current roles, Professor Menter worked at the universities of Glasgow, the West of Scotland, London Metropolitan, the West of England and Gloucestershire.  He was Professor of Teacher Education and Director of Professional Programmes at the University of Oxford’s Department of Education from 2012 to 2015 and a member of the steering group for the BERA and the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce inquiry into the role of research in teacher education.

For information on this and other Leeds Beckett events go to http://www.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/events/  and to join in the conversation use the hashtag #CarnegieEvents.

The full list of talks in the series is:

‘What is a teacher in the 21^st century and what does a 21^st Century teacher need to know?’ – Professor Ian Menter. 6pm Wednesday 9 March 2016.  James Graham Building, Headingley Campus.

‘A collaborative approach to developing Yorkshire’s talent’ – Andy Rock, Dr Ben Jones and Dr Kevin Till. 6pm Thursday 10 March 2016.  Lewis Jones Suite, Headingley Carnegie Stadium.

‘Has football really moved on from racism?’ – Emy Onuora. 6pm Thursday 17 March 2016. Lewis Jones Suite, Headingley Carnegie Stadium.

‘The lives and careers of women as sports coaches: The voices of the coaches’ – Dr Leanne Norman.  6pm Thursday 28 April 2016. Lewis Jones Suite, Headingley Carnegie Stadium.