Genista - Bury St. Edmunds tutor





Genista's profile picture

Information About Genista:


Personal Description:

I am a life community artist and qualified teacher who has worked for many years with students suffering mental health problems, learning difficulties, disabilities, special needs and children.
I currently work as a free-lance artist delivering workshops over the years through local charities and Suffolk county council.
Therefore, I have a developed a strong links within the local organisational and charitable community network and know many contacts within Suffolk.



Teaching Experience:

Until September 2014, I was the Art and Graphic Design curriculum manager working at HMP Highpoint, a Male Cat B/C prison. As a senior manager, I balanced the requirements of professional teaching practice with running a team, underpinned by responsibilities that specifically apply to working within a secure establishment. It is a challenging area to work one-to-one with sensitive individuals.

This became a most formative time in my life where I evolved as a person and learnt enormously through working with people at risk of marginalisation by society.

An experience as acting deputy role at Highpoint provided an invaluable learning curve for honing new skills towards empathetic leadership and managing diplomacy. Interpersonal mediation between staff and learners and good communication skills lies at the heart of the role.
After six years, it felt like time to re- channel energies towards broadening my knowledge and practical skill expertise. I then applied to the Princes School of Traditional Art, where I specialise in teaching occasional ceramics and stained glass workshops, which I have transferred into the community to continue practice within local settings: the Women's refuge; Elderberries day care services (for vulnerable adults), Arts for Us playscheme 5-9yrs for children referred to us through Social Services, Suffolk Artlink, Bury Mind and Art Heads (Bury St.Edmunds).
I have a current DBS and Safe Guarding qualifications.



Tutoring Approach:

I most enjoy one to one connection, responding to human thoughts in the interactive practice and learning to distinguish the fine line between teaching and support. Judging when to stand back from a formal structure and respond to flexible process to emerge.
That is the time when the tutor learns most from a student.
Considering how to encourage, how to acknowledge the small steps, drawing upon the positives, being receptive.

A healthy, creative, engaged mind are building blocks to well-being and curiosity to learn more, of their personalities, these are often masked by problems with learning, being able to make sense of the world or having the resources to work through emotional pain or to make the necessary small steps towards reconstructing a day to day living confirmation of self-independence and existence; ,met by acquiring basics skills, looking after one's self, social skills or concentrating on a task to see through to conclusion, all of which have huge self-achievement values attached. This can all start to emerge in the right kind of supportive arena- a safe and happy place to allow one to process things out at one's own pace.



Map showing Genista's location

Qualifications:

  • PGCE (QTLS) Teaching
  • Master Tutor for Traditional Arts
  • BA in Fine Art
  • Safe Guarding Vulnerable children and adult

Further Information:

Availability:  Weekends / Weekdays (all times)
Types of Tutoring:   Travels to you / From their home
References Supplied?   Yes
Current DBS/CRB Check?   Yes