Kate Timms-Dean, Lecturer.

Teacher, Māori studies lecturer, mother, researcher, snooker champion...

Kate's hugely diverse interests and responsibilities all display her zest for life and learning. She lectures full-time, formulating and assessing a variety of programmes across campus, with a particular responsibility for teaching Māori language and culture, and the Treaty of Waitangi. She has six young children, a Victorian villa in need of loving renewal, loves web design and gardening, and has had a life-long passion for teaching. This passion has been recognised in a number of awards and distinctions.

When Kate began to work for her Graduate Certificate in Tertiary Learning and Teaching via APL, she already had a Bachelor of Arts and a postgraduate diploma, and had completed a significant amount of three other qualifications. What she found was that the APL process was a way of bringing together so much of her thought and experience in a fresh and meaningful way.

"The process enabled me to reflect on my teaching practice in a very deep and real way that has had a number of flow-on effects. The main impact is that it has given me a clearer understanding of my teaching praxis in that I know what my philosophy and values are, and there are clear links between these and my teaching practice. Prior to engaging in APL I had gotten to the point in my teaching where teaching theory was something I no longer really considered – I just taught

..The APL process enabled me to spend time rekindling the connection between theory and practice. This has been incredibly valuable and rewarding.

Having the one-on-one facilitation was extremely helpful. My facilitator encouraged me and really just set my mind at ease that I was on the right track. I cannot speak too highly of her – she made the whole experience easier."

Gaining the Graduate Certificate via APL has also had some very practical outcomes. Now that Kate has completed this compulsory part of her professional development as a lecturer, she is free to seek promotion, and return to completing her Doctorate.

Kate considers undergoing the APL process "one of the highlights" of her varied ongoing academic career. "I would recommend the process and CAPL to anyone."