OllieBray.com: About Ollie

Welcome to my space on the Internet.

If you’re looking for a conference biography you can find a long one here and a short one here. You can also find out more about some of the projects I’ve worked on and what some (nice) people say about me here.

You could also check out my LinkedIn profile for more information or to get connected.

"The views on this blog are personal and do not necessarily reflect those of my employer."

So what about me…

I am currently Principal (Headteacher) at Kingussie High School located in the Cairngorms National Park in the Scottish Highlands - I took over this post in October 2013.

I also spend some of my time as the Senior Consultant at OllieBray.com and Senior Associate at the-learning-crowd where I pursue a variety of projects that ultimately aim to improve classrooms, schools and education systems through the development of new school buildings, better teacher professional development and the integration of technology, outdoor learning or both.

Between March 2009 and August 2012 I was seconded to work as National Adviser for Emerging Technologies in Learning at Education Scotland. Education Scotland is the government-funded agency in Scotland responsible for curriculum design, innovation, CPD and evaluation. I worked within the International Reaserch and Innovation Directorate as part of the emerging technologies team. Other projects in our directorate include GLOW (the national intranet), sustainable education and global citizenship. As part of this secondment between November 2010 and July 2011 the main focus of my work was developing Scotland’s Technologies for Learning Strategy on behalf of the Scottish Government.

As well as the above experience, in previous lives I have been Depute Head Teacher (vice-principal) at Grantown Grammar School in the Scottish Highlands and Musselburgh Grammar School in East Lothian, Scotland. I’ve worked in Scotland for the last fifteen years and held a variety of roles including Classroom Teacher, Head of Department, Head of Faculty, Depute Head Teacher, Headteacher and Senior Policy Adviser to Government.

I am committed to the education of young people in Scotland, the UK and further afield. I remain passionate about the role of ICT and outdoor learning to enhance learning and teaching. This commitment has resulted in a wide variety of exciting projects and consultancy work throughout the UK and further afield. I am also very lucky to have had the opportunity to speak to a range of audiences on a number of topics.

As well as working in classrooms, schools and school systems. I regularly lead international youth expeditions to global locations. Previous expeditions have included ventures to Cascade Mountains, Alaskan Arctic, Wyoming, Canada and various locations across Europe.

When I’m not working (which seems to be most of the time!) I try to get out on my mountain bike, paddle my sea kayak or open boat and explore the Scottish hills.

I live in Cairngorm National Park in Scotland, but grew up in Weymouth a sunny seaside town in the south of England. People who know me will testify to my love of proper coffee, real ale and single malt whisky.

Qualifications

Academic ones:

BSc (Hons) Geography, 1st Class, University of Plymouth
PGDE Geography (with ICT elective) University of Edinburgh
Full Registration from the Scottish GTC
Scottish Qualification for Headship (SQH)
Postgraduate diploma in education leadership and management (University of Edinburgh)

Exciting ones:

UKMLTB Mountaineering Instructors Award (MIA)
SMLTB Winter Mountain Leader Award
BCU/SCA Level 4 Sea Kayak and Inland White Water Kayak Coach with A4 Assessor Status
HSE First Aid Trainer
25m bronze swimming certificate (without putting your feet down)

Other Skills:

ICT literate
Excellent presentation skills and project management
Unparalleled enthusiasm (to the point of annoyance)

Awards and recognition:

2014 - Became Microsoft Expert Educator
2013 - Became Intel Education Ambassador (one of two in the UK)
2012 - Became Google Certified Teacher
2011 - Scottish Association of Geography Teachers Publishers Award for Exploring People and Place: Level 4.
2011 - Honored by Child Exploitation Online Protection Agency (CEOP) for work on Internet Safety and Responsible use in Schools.
2010 - Scottish Association of Geography Teachers Publishers Award for Exploring People and Place: Level 3.
2009 - Award Winner. Microsoft Worldwide Innovative Teachers Forum, Brazil for ICT in the Community
2009 – First Place. Microsoft European Innovative Teachers Forum for ICT in the Community.
2009 – UK Microsoft Innovative Teachers Award for Computer Games Based learning.
2008 – Became Apple UK Distinguished Educator
2008 - Scottish Qualification for Headship academic course prize.
2006 – Microsoft/SQA Partners in Learning Award for Geography GEOCASTS project (some of the first on-line revision content using RSS on the web).
2005 – John Dickie Award to investigate the role of Interactive Voting Systems in the classroom.
2004 – Learning and Teaching Scotland ICT Enhancement Award from International Weather Station Project.
2003 – Learning and Teaching ICT Enhancement Award for Geography at Altitude Project.
2002 – Royal Geographical Society Award for Innovative Geography Teaching