Our blog posts are written by education experts and specialists at Cambridge Assessment International Education. You can expect to see well-researched, informative and original content that will provide you with advice and ideas as well as innovative approaches to improving teaching practice.
Author profiles
North London Collegiate School Jeju
North London Collegiate School Jeju is an international school located on the island of Jeju in South Korea. The school has almost 1500 students aged from four to 18, with many boarding. Students take Cambridge IGCSE qualifications in Years 10 and 11.
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Simon Armitage
Simon Armitage is part of the Senior Management Team of The Perse School, Cambridge, UK where he has been appointed Deputy Head (International Schools and Projects). He is the education lead for The Perse Schools in Suzhou and Singapore as well as the school's co-development of the Blutick Mathematics online teaching and learning system. The Perse is also a founding member of the Strategic Alliance of Global Educators (SAGE) and Simon works to promote opportunities for students and teachers to collaborate and learn between the 17 SAGE schools across the world.
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Shahid Ashraf
Shahid is a Senior Manager in Pakistan. Before working at Cambridge Assessment International Education, he worked with the British Council both in Pakistan and the UAE. He holds a Master's degree in Economics from the University of Karachi and an MBA in Marketing from M.A. University also in Karachi.
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Abigail Barnett
Abbi is responsible for leading the development of Cambridge’s Primary and Lower Secondary curricula, including the expansion of subjects on offer as part of the programme. She has co-developed an approach to education system evaluation based on the theory of curriculum coherence and has most recently carried out evaluation work in the US, Bermuda, Kuwait, India and Ethiopia. She has a particular interest in formative purposes and uses of assessment. Before joining Cambridge International, Abbi worked as a local authority education consultant, focused on school improvement in secondary schools, particularly working with English departments and on whole school literacy. She started her career teaching secondary English in the UK. From 2002-7 she taught IB English A1 and Theory of Knowledge at Bangkok Patana School, a British international school in Thailand. Abbi has a degree in English Studies from the University of Nottingham, and a PGCE from the University of Manchester.
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Georgie Billings
Georgie is a Senior Assessment Advisor at Cambridge Assessment International Education. She previously worked at the Standards and Testing Agency within the Department of Education, where she developed National Curriculum Tests in Reading.
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Alison Borthwick
Alison Borthwick is an international education and mathematics consultant. She is a trainer, teacher, facilitator and advisor and has experience in the UK and internationally. She has worked with many different educational organisations, including several departments within the University of Cambridge. As part of her work for Cambridge International, she has written and delivered training, conducted monitoring and evaluation capacity development, reviewed curricula and been involved in the Cambridge conferences. Alison is also an active researcher, writer and co-author. She has edited and published several books, journals, academic papers and blogs.
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Lynda Bramwell
Lynda has been Cambridge International’s School Liaison Manager since 2015 and has worked in the education sector throughout her career as both a teacher and an editor in education publishing. She is passionate about the importance of the role of teachers and learners in the development of new products and services.
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Dr Gerard Calnin
Dr Gerard Calnin is a Scholar-Practitioner with the Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK) and was formerly a Research Fellow at The University of Melbourne. His current research interests are in school leadership, teacher evaluation and school effectiveness. Prior to working at EdUHK, Gerard held senior leadership roles in p-12 schooling and at the system/sectoral level; he was also an international research fellow in the USA and UK. He works with schools and school systems, and presents at conferences globally on a regular basis.
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Tania Clarke
Tania Clarke is a Vice Chancellor’s and St Edmund’s Charter doctoral scholar, supervisor and teacher at the Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge. Tania is also a Group Coordinator for children’s charity Centre 33. Prior to undertaking her PhD, she worked at Cambridge Assessment where she led research on curriculum reform and assessment design in Malaysia, India and Indonesia. Tania holds a Master’s in Psychology and Education and a Bachelor's degree from the University of Cambridge.
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Rehema Clarken
Dr Rehema Clarken is Academic Principal at the Beijing Foreign Studies University International Curriculum Centre. The ICC offers three-year full-time high school programmes, with a core module of Cambridge IGCSE and Cambridge International A Level alongside five supporting modules to foster students’ competence in language education, academic skills, and social activities.
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Tony Cotton
Tony Cotton is an educational consultant and full time writer. His recent publications include Understanding and Teaching Primary Mathematics and How to develop confident mathematicians in the early years for Routledge; three different mathematics programmes for International Primary schools and Approaches to learning and teaching Primary: A toolkit for international teachers for CUP. Tony is the editor of Mathematics Teaching, the journal of The Association of Teachers of Mathematics.
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Elizabeth Croft
Professor Croft is Dean of Monash Engineering, the highest ranked Engineering Faculty in Australia, where she oversees over 8,000 students and 500 academic and professional staff. Professor Croft is recognised internationally as an expert in the field of human-robotic interaction. She has an exceptional record of advancing women’s representation and participation in engineering. She completed a B.A.Sc. (University of British Columbia), an M.A.Sc. (University of Waterloo), and a Ph.D. (University of Toronto). She is a Fellow of ASME, Engineers Canada, Past NSERC Chair for Women in Science and Engineering, BC and Yukon (2010-2015) and received the R.A. McLachlan Award from the Engineering and Geoscientists of British Columbia (EGBC) in 2018.
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Anthony Dawson
Dr Anthony Dawson is Deputy Director, Assessment Standards and Quality with Cambridge International. After university, Anthony taught Physics in the Maldives for a number of years before beginning a career in assessment. He has been working in various roles within Cambridge Assessment for the last 26 years, 20 of which have been with Cambridge International. Initially he managed our portfolio of Physics and Computing syllabuses. As Deputy Director, Assessment Standards and Quality, he is now responsible for the standards of our qualifications.
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Vidula Desai
Vidula is the Marketing and Communications Manager at Cambridge International Assessment International Education. She is in-charge of the all the Marketing and Communications activities for the South Asia region including India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal. She holds a Post Graduate Degree in Business Design and her areas of interest are social media marketing, PR and design thinking.
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Richard Driscoll
Richard Driscoll is Head of Humanities at Shenzhen College of International Education in China’s Guangdong province. The school was established in 2003 and offers Cambridge IGCSE, Cambridge International AS and A Level courses. The school has more than 900 students. and over 100 teaching staff from more than a dozen countries.
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Kevin Ebenezer
Kevin Ebenezer joined Cambridge Assessment International Education in 2013 as Assessment Product Manager in the International Projects Team, before joining the Recognitions Team as the Recognitions Manager for the UK and Ireland. Prior to this, Kevin worked in international schools as a Guidance Counsellor, and Assistant Head of School, where he helped many students with the university application process, and developed a deep understanding of international admissions.
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Paul Ellis
Paul Ellis is Head of Teaching & Learning at Cambridge Assessment International Education. He is in charge of the worldwide recruitment and development of teacher-trainers, the general professional development of teachers, and directs the educational content of our schools’ conferences. He taught in the UK and France for 10 years, has Master’s degrees in Modern Languages, Education and Business Administration, and has held senior positions in the provision of international education since 2006.
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Andrew Field
Andrew is eLearning Manager at Cambridge Assessment International Education. He has fifteen years’ teaching experience, originally as History teacher then Head of Faculty for Computing and IT. He was an Adobe Educational Leader for ten years, developing a range of eLearning materials and resources.
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Rob Ford
Rob Ford is Director of Heritage International School in Chisinau, Moldova, the first international school in Moldova based on global learning principles and following the Cambridge International Assessment curriculum. Rob has been a senior leader in leading schools in Wales and England and was previously Principal of Wyedean School, Gloucestershire, UK where he led a school known for its innovative holistic curriculum and developed model of global learning. Rob is a British Council Ambassador and has worked with and advised schools and school boards around the World. Rob recently published his first book based on his blog at Wyedean School, This Heart Shaped Land, available on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/THIS-HEART-SHAPED-LAND-Finding-ebook/dp/B08GJZJQTM
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Tabitha Gould
In partnership with Cambridge University, Cambridge Assessment, and Cambridge University Press, Cambridge Mathematics is developing a flexible, interconnected, and research informed digital Framework to help reimagine maths education from 3 to 19. Tabitha Gould is in the Framework Design team.
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Lauren Harris
Lauren is an Education Officer at Cambridge International Examinations. She has a BA in French and Hispanic Studies and an MPhil in Latin American Studies.
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Carol Hinde
Carol Hinde teaches Cambridge Global Perspectives, science and biology at Chisipite Senior School, Harare, a leading private girls’ school in Zimbabwe with 600 learners. It was founded in 1954 and prides itself on offering a holistic education giving learners the opportunity to embrace traditional and modern academic subjects.
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Kathryn Horan
Kathryn Horan is a primary teacher and independent education consultant based in Yorkshire in the UK. She is also a Primary Science Quality Mark Hub Leader and a fellow of the Primary Science Teacher Trust.
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Conrad Hughes
Conrad Hughes (MA, PhD, EdD) is Campus and Secondary Principal at the International School of Geneva, La Grande Boissière, where he teaches philosophy. He is a UNESCO International Bureau of Education Senior Fellow, research associate with the University of Geneva’s Education and Psychology department and member of the Education Board for the University of the People. Conrad’s most recent books are Understanding Prejudice and Education: The Challenge for Future Generations (Routledge) and Educating for the 21st Century: Seven Global Challenges (Brill).
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Fiona Jackson
Dr Fiona Jackson, Head of Primary and Lower Secondary Development, Curriculum Programmes Team. Fiona is responsible for managing the development of the ten subjects that comprise the Cambridge’s Primary and Lower Secondary programme. She has also developed and delivered training on curriculum design with many of our ministry partners. She has a particular interest in fidelity of implementation. Before joining Cambridge International, Fiona worked on research projects related to whole school behaviour and Before that she worked for 20 years as a telecommunications engineer. Fiona has a Masters and PhD in Education from the University of Cambridge, a BEd Primary Education from Griffith University in Australia and she is a qualified teacher.
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Thomas Kennedy
Thomas Kennedy is the Social Media Manager for Cambridge Assessment International Education. A former English teacher and published author he has worked for the company since June 2017.
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Amanda Kirby
Professor Amanda Kirby is a professor in developmental disorders in education. She has a specific interest in digital delivery and is the CEO of Do-IT Solutions. This provides screening and assessment tools for children and adults especially focusing on ascertaining the strengths of those who are neurodivergent and helping support challenges. See www.doitprofiler.com.
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Swetha Krishnamurthy
Swetha Krishnamurthy an Educationist and a passionate teacher, currently is the Correspondent of Li’l Pallikkoodam (A Reggio Inspired Play school) and RaK’s Pallikkoodam School of Excellence (A Cambridge International School) in Coimbatore. She is a specialist in teaching, training, and mentoring across various skill sets. Backed with an M.Ed (Research) from the University of Birmingham, and an M.B.A from the Manipal Academy of Higher Education. She belongs to the management of Vidhya Niketan group of Schools, Coimbatore.
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Rachel Logan
Rachel Logan is a Product Manager for Art and Design at Cambridge Assessment International Education. She looks after Ministry Art and Design qualifications and has just launched the new AS & A Level Digital Media & Design. Rachel’s background is in teaching art and design with a specialism in ceramics. She has an MA in Ceramics Design and has exhibited her ceramics internationally.
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Ems Lord
Ems has been the Director of NRICH since 2015, following her previous role leading one of the country's largest Mathematics Specialist Teacher Programmes. Ems has taught mathematics across the key stages, from Early Years to A Level Further Mathematics, and has worked in a variety of settings including a hospital school.
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Jerry Lucido
Jerry Lucido is the executive director and founder of the USC Centre for Enrolment Research, Policy and Practice at the University of Southern California. As professor and centre director, he initiated the Master’s program in Enrolment Management and Policy at USC and conducts research in the areas of admission and enrolment management.
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Lucila Marquez
Lucila is Senior Manager, Latin America (Southern Cone & Andes). She has worked with Cambridge for almost 3 years, and her role includes developing awareness of Cambridge programmes and qualifications in the school sector, and working closely with our Associates in her region.
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Dr Ros McLellan
Dr Ros McLellan taught psychology and mathematics in the secondary schools for a number of years before joining the Faculty of Education at Cambridge University. Her long-standing interest is student motivation. In recent years, she has also worked on a number of projects focusing not only on achievement motivation but also on student wellbeing, mathematics anxiety, and creativity. Ros works with schools to develop and refine strategies that make a real difference to teaching and learning in the classroom. She coordinates the long-standing SUPER network which is a partnership between the Faculty of Education and local schools that conducts research together that mutually benefits all partners. This work has led to collaboration with a network of schools in Kazakhstan where colleagues from the SUPER network helped to foster teachers' professional learning.
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Fleur Mclennan
Fleur studied a BA, majoring in Australian Politics and History. She has a post-graduate degree in secondary teaching (English and Humanities) and 18 years teaching experience around the world. Fleur is an international teacher trainer with Cambridge International Examinations.
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Dr Chris McLeod
Dr Chris McLeod has recently completed his PhD in eating behaviour and experimental psychology at Loughborough University after completing Master’s degrees at Loughborough University and the University of St Andrews. His PhD research focussed on the influence of food-to-mealtime associations on eating behaviour and his general research interest is in improving the healthspan of humans through behavioural interventions.
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Jessica Minaeian
Jessica is a Development Officer (Curriculum Support) at Cambridge International and joined the organisation in April 2018. She previously worked as a Secondary English Teacher and Whole School Literacy Co-ordinator in both Yorkshire and Cambridgeshire
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Peter Monteath
Peter has been part of Cambridge International for 18 years, and held positions managing research and strategy before moving to a schools- facing role, managing UK & Ireland through a period of exceptional growth. He became Regional Director in 2016 and now manages the Europe team. He also has oversight of regional strategy, recognition of Cambridge qualifications, and the training and development requirements of schools across Europe.
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Daniel Morrish
Dr Daniel Morrish is a Development Manager at Cambridge International Examinations. Daniel is part of the team responsible for the development of Cambridge ICT Starters as well as bespoke ICT and Computing syllabuses for ministries and other bodies. He has worked at Cambridge Assessment since 2009.
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Jo Morton-Brown
Jo Morton-Brown works as an Emotional Health Practitioner, blending different roles into one: she is a BACP accredited school counsellor; a family support worker; and a provider of training to adults on mental health issues affecting children and young people (CYP). Jo recently created a YouTube channel to directly support CYP (aged 10-19) by creating weekly videos aimed at bolstering their mental health: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUFB1XwKcbymlIJCzyeo6eg Jo’s videos are professional, motivational and always from the heart; her desire is to inspire CYP to be the best they can be. Jo is a passionate and committed advocate for the improvement of mental health and believes early intervention is key. Combining her academic knowledge with first-hand experience, she offers fellow professionals the chance to gain a better understanding of the mental health and emotional wellbeing issues affecting CYP.
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Marc Neesam
Marc works in the Curriculum Programmes team as a Curriculum Programmes Manager. He is a science specialist (Chemistry degrees from the University of Nottingham and the University of York) and has taught in primary schools in the UK and has worked with a Learned Society to develop primary science support materials
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Zoe Neville-Smith
Zoe is the Senior Marketing Manager, Europe for Cambridge Assessment International Education.
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Denise Nijhuis
Denise Nijhuis works at University College Roosevelt (UCR) as Coordinator Student Recruitment and Admissions, where she oversees the admissions process from start to finish. Outside UCR she serves as Vice-President for Professional Development of the International Association for College Admissions Counseling (IACAC) and is a member of the Council of International Schools (CIS) Webinar Committee.
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Temuujin Nyamdavaa
Temuujin Nyamdavaa is an English teacher who works at Orchlon International School, which offers Mongolian national curriculum along with Cambridge curriculum, based in Ulaanbaatar. He majored in English Education at International University of Ulaanbaatar in 2013 and got a Master’s degree in Linguistics in 2015. He received a Fulbright scholarship for The Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant Program in 2017 and assisted with teaching of Mongolian language and culture at Indiana University for one academic year. He has 7 years of experience in teaching English. He enjoys watching thriller movies and reading Stephen King novels
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Raed Omar
Raed is Senior Manager, Saudi Arabia & Bahrain. He has over 10 years' experience in the education sector and a postgraduate diploma in marketing communications form Middlesex University London.
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Cambridge Outlook
Cambridge Outlook, published three times a year, is for Cambridge schools worldwide. Every issue of the magazine explores an educational theme, with contributions from teachers, school leaders and academics. The magazine also includes all the latest information about events, training and teacher support.
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Michael O’Sullivan
Michael O'Sullivan was appointed Chief Executive of Cambridge International Examinations in April 2013. He has a BA in French and German from Brasenose College, Oxford, an MPhil in Linguistics from Wolfson College, Cambridge, and is a fluent Mandarin speaker.
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Tom Parkinson
Tom Parkinson has worked for Cambridge Assessment as the Recognition Consultant for Spain since 2019. Previously he worked as Head of Secondary School for 20 years in a British school in Madrid.
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Professor David Putwain
Professor Putwain taught in various schools and sixth form colleges in the UK from 1994 to 2006. After completing a PhD in 2006, David joined Edge Hill University working initially in the Department of Social and Psychological Sciences and subsequently in the Faculty of Education. David joined Liverpool John Moores University in May 2016. His research interests focus on how psychological factors influence, and in turn are influenced by, learning and achievement. He has a longstanding interest in test anxiety among school-aged populations and the development of interventions to provide students with the tools they need to manage their test anxiety.
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Javaria Rana
Ms Javaria Rana teaches O-Level English Language at First Steps School, Pakistan, and is also a certified programme leader for the Educational Leadership certification. She has a BSc Hons in Political Science and Sociology, and began teaching English Language in Pakistan in 2011. Alongside teaching, she has also held an administrative position at First Steps School, as an administrator from 2010-2012 and currently as a Campus Manager.
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Helen Rees-Bidder
Helen Rees-Bidder is an independent educational consultant, senior examiner and lead trainer for Cambridge Assessment International Education. She was a teacher of English and Drama for 27 years.
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Julie Reid
Julie is an Education Officer within the Teaching and Learning team. Her role involves the recruitment, induction and development of Cambridge trainers.
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Judith Roberts
Dr Judith Roberts trained at the University of Cambridge, starting as a biologist specialising in parasitology for her PhD. During her time as a researcher, she realised that she was much more interested in teaching and learning than laboratory research. She qualified as a school teacher in 2010, received a Masters of Education in 2012 and joined Cambridge International in 2013. She is now Head of Primary and Lower Secondary, Development, in Cambridge International where she oversees the development of the curriculum frameworks, support materials and training for all Cambridge Primary and Lower Secondary subjects. Photo courtesy of Douglas Robar, robar.co
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Stuart Shaw
Before leading a research team in the area of mainstream international examinations, Stuart worked on a range of Cambridge ESOL products with specific skill responsibilities for Writing. He is particularly interested in demonstrating how Cambridge Assessment seeks to meet the demands of validity in their tests.
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Dominique Slade
Dominique is Head of Technical and Vocational Pathways and part of the Education Services team at Cambridge Assessment International Education.
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Anna Smith
Anna Smith is Education Manager at Cambridge International Examinations. She has almost twenty years’ experience as a teacher and leader, and was a principal of an international Sixth Form for five years.
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Tristian Stobie
Tristian is Director, Education at Cambridge Assessment International Education . He leads the development of our education strategy for schools, supporting Cambridge teachers and learners.
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Liz Taylor
Dr Liz Taylor is an experienced educator and teacher trainer. Until recently she was Senior Lecturer in Education at the Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge, UK. Liz has extensive experience in teaching and leading research-based initial teacher education and undergraduate courses. She also supervised MEd and PhD students and undertook research in geography education, textbooks and curriculum issues. Now she works internationally as an Education Consultant, writing and leading training, speaking at conferences and running workshops on topics such as active learning, assessment for learning, metacognition and understanding impact. Recently she has worked in Pakistan, China, Malaysia, the USA, India and Kazakhstan.
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Edward Tranter
Edward Tranter achieved the highest score in the UK when he took Cambridge Pre-U Global Perspectives & Research (GPR) at Spalding Grammar School in June 2018, along with A Levels in law, ethics & philosophy, and history. He is now studying in the United States, reading Philosophy at Swarthmore College, Pennsylvania after winning a place there on a scholarship thanks to receiving significant help and guidance from the Sutton Trust US programme.
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Sarah Turner
Sarah is an Education Manager in the Professional Development Qualifications (PDQ) Team, where she works closely with centres to ensure the quality of the Cambridge PDQs. Sarah is from a teaching background having spent fifteen years as a secondary school English teacher prior to joining Cambridge Assessment.
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Roshan Walkerley
Roshan Walkerley is the Recognitions Manager for the UK, Ireland and the Netherlands, part of the Cambridge International Global Recognitions team.
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Iain Wyder
Iain has been teaching Cambridge programmes and qualifications in China since 2006. His primary focus is on Economics at both Cambridge IGCSE and Cambridge International A Level.
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Julia Yu
Dr Julia Yu has a PhD in Educational Psychology, and an MSc in E-learning. She is Cambridge International’s Regional Professional Development Manager for East Asia. A former lecturer in a Chinese higher education institute, Julia is very passionate about education, with a special interest in exploring innovative ways to enhance teaching and learning.
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Rubina Zahir
Rubina Zahir is associated with Lahore Grammar School for 11 years with an overall 30 years of experience in the field of education as a teacher and school leader. She did her Post Graduate Diploma Course (PGDC) in Advance Professional Studies from the University Of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK. Since then she has also been working as a master teacher trainer. Rubina is passionate about teachers training and believes that teachers are the most important factor in making teaching and learning more effective and meaningful.
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Christine Özden
Christine Özden was appointed Chief Executive of Cambridge Assessment International Education in January 2019. Christine began her career in international education at Cambridge University Press, and has a wealth of senior leadership experience in the design, development and delivery of educational products and services, with a particular focus on publishing and assessment. She has worked in different educational contexts in Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Africa, and has lived in Vietnam, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and the UK. Christine has an MA in Classical Arabic and Turkish from the University of Edinburgh and a Master’s in Business Administration from Warwick University.
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