Welcome to the next instalment of our Staff Spotlight series. We're pleased to introduce Lecturer in Sport Science, Mark Williams.
Mark's main area of focus is athletic development. He is a strength and conditioning coach for GB Basketball and Basketball England. During lockdown, he is working with professional basketball players, to create Instagram Live sessions to help basketball players of all ages to keep active. Like much of his work, the live sessions inspire young players and promote an interest in sport.
Since Writtle University College's switch to remote learning on March 17th 2020, Mark and fellow academics have been using their knowledge to support the student experience in new and innovative ways. He explains: "Remote learning presents academics and students with challenges and opportunities. We provide recorded lecture content for students to view and then run online live seminars as well as one-to-one tutorials. In many respects, this adds a new and important dimension to the students' learning. In their future careers, they may find online meetings and working independently from home may make up a proportion of the working week."
Mark hopes to pass his enthusiasm for sport onto WUC's students. He says: "Physical activity has the potential to increase our wellbeing. My own passion for sport emerged through playing rugby and then learning how human performance could be influenced and shaped through the sports science. For me, it is about the interactions with people and the search for deeper answers about how we can improve people's performance; that does not have to equate to professional or elite level sport.
"In fact, my passion lies in how we create learning environments that help children to physically develop. Physical activity and feeling competent breeds confidence as well as the physical health benefits that come from being active. Therefore, I am fascinated by all sports and related careers."