About CSci

Submitted by dario on Tue, 03/15/2011 - 12:44
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Image: 
Name: 
Iris Turner
Featured Profile: 
No
At A Glance
Licensed Body: 
RSC
Region: 
London
Location: 
Middlesex
Job: 
Retired but doing some part-time work
Age: 
68 years
Home: 
Isleworth
Works For: 
Moderator for Open College Network and Teacher at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew
Qualifications: 
BSC, MSc, MPhil, PhD
Pet Hates: 
Slowness of some people to respond to queries
Burning Ambition: 
To visit Iceland
Superpower: 
Make everybody have some understanding of the “big environmental issues” facing the world now
Big Picture
When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up? 
A chemist
Who or what inspired you to become a scientist? 
My Chemistry teacher at secondary school
What do you love about your job and being a “scientist”? 
Teaching mature students
What would you change? 
Nothing
Education
What qualifications did you take at school? 
OLs = 10, ALs = 3
Why did you choose your first degree subject? 
Chemistry, Mathematics and Geography
Do you have a Masters or PhD? If not, was it difficult to demonstrate Masters-level equivalence in order to achieve CSci? 
Both
Job
What is ‘cutting-edge’ about your work? 
Teaching future educated adults with a good science backgrounds
What are the biggest implications your work will/could have in the future? 
Maintaining the flora of the world, training students to promote aspects of science to their pupils etc
Describe some of the highlights of your average day. 
Receiving E-mails from ex-students across the world
How is your job cross-disciplinary? 
I have taught a variety of science subjects across the years including chemistry, environmental science, mathematics, physical geography ,biogeography. I have an interest in experiential learning for giving credits to mature students engaged in further and higher education
How well is your job compensated? What is the starting salary for your field, and how much can this be expected to rise? 
Not relevant as I receive a teacher’s pension
How do you see your field developing over the next 5-10 years? 
The government will value teaching at all levels and provide the necessary funding for experimental work whether in the laboratory or in the field
What’s the biggest achievement of your career so far? 
Receiving the Kew Medal from Alan Titchmarsh
Life
Would you say you have a good standard of living/ work-life balance? 
As a retired person I select what I wish to do
What do your friends and family think about your job? 
Very impressed with my career as it progressed to principal lecturer in Higher Education, senior lecturer in a university and lecturer in School of horticulture at Kew Gardens
What kind of hobbies or extracurricular activities do you do to relax? 
Walking, stamp collecting, gardening, photography
CSci
Why did you choose to apply for CSci and what do you value most about being a Chartered Scientist? 
Acceptance is valued by large organizations
What is the value of professional bodies? 
They have the opportunity to influence governmental policy
How important is CPD? What do you think of the revalidation process in ensuring that CSci is a mark of current competence? 
It is important to keep abreast of recent developments in your subject(s). In my case it was necessary to provide my university degree students up-to-date information
Advice & Reflection
How important is the mentoring process in your field and to you personally? 
Becoming more and more important as full-time employment is becoming more stressful
How would you define “professionalism”? 
Behaving in a responsible way under all situations
What would you do differently if you were starting out in your career now? 
Nothing
What would you like people to remember about your life as a scientist? 
I was always ready to listen to my students
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