I am interested in the application of critical thinking to active global citizenship education and participatory models of community-led education development. At the heart of this is a desire to bring a power dimension to all forms of service and partnerships education in schools and communities.
Teaching
I have taught full-time for over 11 years, teaching Philosophy, Religious Studies, Critical Thinking and Theory of Knowledge at secondary level, alongside coaching sport. From 2014-2017, I was Housemistress of Seldon House at Brighton College and in 2017-2018 I was supported with a sponsored sabbatical year to live in Ghana to further develop EduSpots, also supporting the development of pastoral care and community service at African Science Academy in Tema, Ghana. In 2018, I moved back to the UK to take on a full-time role teaching and leading an ‘Institute’ of service and partnerships at Sevenoaks School. From 2023, I decided to take the jump into leading EduSpots full-time whilst developing wider fields of work.
Education
I studied Philosophy at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, followed by a fourth year in Management Studies at Cambridge’s Judge Business School, also representing the university in football and hockey. Whilst teaching, I gained a PGCE with QTS at Buckingham University before completing an MA in Education and International Development part-time at UCL, gaining a Distinction. My dissertation exploring literacy as a social practice applying postcolonial thinking was used as a model for the next cohort. I have also participated in the Cambridge Social Ventures Weekend and was recently passed a six month learning programme with the Ashoka Changemakers Academy, sponsored by American Express, which focuses on systems change and good governance.
Leadership
Whilst teaching full-time, after several years of partnerships engagement and research in rural Ghana, I worked with hundreds of students, teachers and community educators in Ghana to create EduSpots, a collaborative education charity which aims to connect, train and equip educational Catalysts to drive community-led change.
Since 2015, EduSpots has supported the creation of 50 community-led education spaces, with an estimated 15,000 annual users supported by an active network of over 300 local volunteers. To achieve this, I’ve led over £700,000 of fundraising, combined with much more at the community level and resource support of over 120,000 books, science kits, and computers. The project won the Tes International Award in 2018, and was shortlisted for the EDUCOM Award for NGO Contribution to Education in Ghana. In 2022 we won the Big Give Supporters’ Choice Award, and in 2023 we were selected as a finalist for the Their World Innovation Prize.
I also developed four online courses exploring critical themes on global development, social entrepreneurship, postcolonial perspectives and leadership that have brought thousands of young people together to explore practical applications of ethical theory. See www.eduspots.org/onlinecourses.
I am also Chair of the Schools Community Action Network, aiming to support teachers across the UK in developing the quality of student engagement and community impact in community action activities. During the first pandemic, I was a board member for Invicta Academy, an online pop-school which was praised by the Prime Minister having created over 150,000 catch-up opportunities, and also helped lead the volunteer response to the pandemic in the Sevenoaks community.
In 2023 I was a semi-finalist for the Big Change ‘Big Education Challenge’ with an idea to drive systems change across UK schools in relation to their approach towards charitable and service education.
Interests
Alongside collaborating with teachers and community educators, I enjoy reading, writing and the creative arts. I ultimately thrive on any form of creativity that promotes collaboration for stronger societal understanding and action of various forms. Please do reach out on cdavison@eduspots.org