What can we say about this 'Teacher of the Year'...
...that isn't summed up in this article from The Guardian entitled The Showstopper:
You don't often hear of pupils spontaneously applauding at the end of a lesson. But David Miller is a special kind of teacher, as Jessica Shepherd, one of the judges, found out.
'Every year that Mr Miller teaches Lord of the Flies, he reads out his favourite passage and cries," says Hannah, 14. "He's bowled over by it - and so are we."
One parent jokes that here in the west of Scotland, the idea that it's OK - for men and boys in particular - to be so moved by literature is "completely groundbreaking".
But then, that's the winner of 2008's Guardian secondary teacher of the year, David Miller, all over. Miller, a late convert to teaching, had been in the profession for only five years when he was asked by a teacher training college to tutor trainees in the creative way he used computers in the classroom.
In his former life, Miller had started a computer software company and worked for Glasgow's arts festival. He'd also found time to have music he had composed published. Then, six years ago, his "teaching moment" came. He was working as a lay member of a children's panel. The panels, distinctive to the Scottish youth justice system, are made up of trained volunteers who sit at the hearings of children under 16 with convictions, family or social troubles and decide how the children can be helped.
"I kept thinking to myself how lucky I'd been with my background and my supportive parents," he says. "I just realised what I really wanted to do was work with children."
Miller is now an English teacher and in charge of English trainee teachers at St Ninian's high school in Bishopbriggs, East Dunbartonshire, near Glasgow, where he started his teaching career.
 The Teaching Awards judges can't speak highly enough of the lessons we observed him teach. In one, on what makes a poem, Miller captivated students with photos and a film clip closely tied to the poem Out, Out - by Robert Frost, on the accidental death of a child. He then read them the poem with what one judge says was "such emotion that he brought an eerie silence and chill to the lecture theatre". "As the bell went and David brought the lesson to a close, the class gave a spontaneous round of applause. The lesson will remain in my memory for a very long time, and there was every indication that this was not a special effort but a very typical lesson."
Another judge who sat in on the lesson says: "The lesson showed his flexible and inspiring use of technology. His questioning technique was exemplary, with one question followed up by another. Students were praised for their answers and there was the same quality of engagement with all the students."
In another lesson, Miller managed to tease out the complex themes of Robert Browning's poem Porphyria's Lover with 13- and 14-year-olds. One judge, a former headteacher, says: "I have never felt myself to be as much of a learner as the pupils being taught. David did not tell the class what they should think, but engaged them so thoroughly that they were able to articulate their own thoughts. I would not have imagined that literary appreciation could have been so effectively taught to so young an age group." "He used technology creatively, effectively and effortlessly, rather than for show," says another judge who observed the lesson.
Miller's teaching style keeps pupils captivated, almost enchanted, and desperate to please and contribute. "He teaches big classes, but you feel he's teaching you one-to-one," says one pupil. "It's as though he's never done the lesson before. It's so fresh," says another. Suzanne, a trainee teacher at St Ninian's, says when she first observed one of his lessons she told herself "this is what I need to be like".
There must be something bad someone can say about Miller, surely? Annoyingly not. "He's a promoter of peace," says Father McMahon, St Ninian's school chaplain. "This is a teacher the students are going to be talking about in their 30s, 40s and beyond," says one parent. "It's not thought that there's a teacher like him in Scotland," says Kelly. "Simply the best teacher I can imagine," concludes one of his pupils.
*Jessica Shepherd was among the judges for the Guardian award
To read the full article and to see interviews with David click here.
David's varied career has seen him teach English in Milan and Copenhagen, work with Sir Philip Ledger at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, fundraise for major Arts festivals and found a successful software company. His call to the teaching profession came in 2001 and was inspired by his work with the Youth Justice System in Scotland, the Children’s Panel, which gave David a vivid insight in to what happens when child and education disengage.
In eight years at St Ninian’s High School, David has had a profound effect on the teaching approaches of staff, and not just in the English Department. A recent report of HM Inspectorate of Education (Scotland’s Ofsted) described the learning environment in David’s English Department as ‘Sector Leading’. As well as teaching at St Ninian’s High School, David is in demand from Universities, local authorities, conference organisers and the Scottish Government. He regularly runs video-conference Masterclasses for Learning and Teaching Scotland.
And we are delighted to have David on board as an Associate with Independent Thinking, especially for his work on technology for learning.
Feedback from teachers who have benefitted from David’s input include:
- "The day with David was a real inspiration. Can’t wait for his next visit to Claydon High School!"
- "David’s training has had a huge impact on learning and teaching at Nailsea High School."
•For David's prices click here
•People who benefited from David have also enjoyed Jim Smith
David's CRB number is 001240665778 issued 23rd June 2009.
To make contact with David to discuss how he can help you in your work please call the Independent Thinking office on 0844 589 0490 or e-mail us at learn@independentthinking.co.uk.
Articles written by David Miller for the TES:
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