A DOON Academy teacher has won an award which is the first of its kind for supporting the learning development of children.
Steven Kelly has been recognised for his dedication to developing meta-skills in young people, becoming the first East Ayrshire teacher to receive the inaugural Gen+ Award.
Presented by Scottish charity Gen+, the award recognises educators committed to improving skills identified by the Curriculum for Excellence as essential for learning, life and work.
Gen+ is a leading meta-skills charity delivering interactive and engaging skills-based learning to more than 22,000 young people across 18 local authorities.
Steven earned the award following the successful delivery of a range of Gen+ programmes to S1-S3 pupils, helping pupils develop key meta-skills including communication, collaboration and resilience.
Although his name is on the award, Mr Kelly has been keen to stress that it has been a team effort in their achievement.
Kirsten Fletcher, depute head teacher at the school, said: “I do think that at Doon Academy, we're really proud of our journey with skills so far.
"Our young people are becoming more literate and discussing their strengths and weaknesses around it and staff are really excited about taking it forward.
"We've had a great group of staff who've really led with it, been creative with it, and developed new and innovative approaches to learning and teaching.
"And that, again, you know, running alongside project-based learning has really kind of revived some of our learning and teaching practices across the school.”
Becca Dobson, Gen+ managing director, added: “This award has been presented to Steven Kelly in recognition of his fantastic commitment to embedding meta-skills at Doon Academy.
"Through his passion, leadership and dedication, Steven has created meaningful opportunities for young people to develop the confidence, resilience and transferable skills they need to thrive.
"Steven’s commitment to the Gen+ programme has helped bring meta-skills to life, making a lasting impact on learners and helping to build a culture where skills development is valued and celebrated.
"We are delighted to recognise and celebrate Steven’s achievements with this award.”
Share