Ayrshire College lecturer shortlisted for Enterprise Award
Ayrshire College’s Music and Sound Production lecturer John McBlain has been nominated in the FE Enterprise Educator of the Year category at the 2021 Bridge 2 Business Enterprise Educator Awards.
The Bridge 2 Business Enterprise Educator Awards are a celebration of 'all things enterprise' across FE colleges in Scotland. The awards recognise and reward students, educators and individuals who are leading the way in enterprise across Scotland.
John has been named a finalist for the outstanding work he has done for his students throughout a difficult year.
He has established a successful podcast – Rockpool Podcasts – which provides an opportunity for Music and Sound Productions students at all levels to showcase their talents.
The podcast project covers units in the course curriculum and gives students an opportunity to express themselves and gain lifelong skills. Students record, interview, edit, produce, publish and promote full episodes that can be listened to on Spotify.
John has also been working as a Blended Learning Facilitator at Ayrshire College, helping staff and students across the College with any concerns with working from home.
John said: "Being nominated for this award has given me the opportunity to showcase not only my own talents, but also those of my collaborators, colleagues and most importantly my students. I'd like to thank Ayrshire College for supporting all the ideas and ventures I've had over the past year and for helping me bring them to life!
“A lot of students are here to develop skills and an awareness of where they want to go. Let's not dwell on what we can't do – what can we do instead? This line of thinking has rubbed off well on the students; their ideas are great and their level of work has improved. Our Introduction to Sound Production students for example are now: playlist curators on Spotify, they are hosting a game show on Twitch, recording podcast episodes, doing amazing work, just through pushing entrepreneurialism.
“Our music students have been producing their own music videos and showcasing some amazing performances! The level of creativity is something I don’t think we would’ve seen without this blended format."
Julie Thorne, Head of Learning and Skills for Arts and Fashion at Ayrshire College, said: “John is one of the most enthusiastic and energetic people I know! I don’t think he ever sits still but, if he does, his mind will be working away on new ideas. It is a joy to work with John and I love his can-do attitude, which seems to be infectious to anyone working with him. He has always been keen to get involved where he can make a difference, and he has made a difference to many. John’s contribution to the College, our department and, in particular, our students has been outstanding and he is very deserving of this award nomination.”
The Bridge 2 Business Enterprise Educator Awards will take place as a virtual ceremony on 3 June at 7pm.
20 May 2021
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