Rachel Berkson

Personal details

• Nationality: British
  
• Date of birth: 27 December 1978
  
• Marital status: Married
  

Qualifications

• Senior Fellow, Higher Education Academy (2019)
• Online Educator: People and pedagogy, Open University FutureLearn MOOC (2019)
• Fellow, Higher Education Academy (2016)
• PGCert, Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, Keele University, UK (2013)
• PhD, Surgery and Molecular Oncology, Dundee University, UK (2005)
• MBioch (First Class), University of Oxford, UK (2001)

Most recent position (September 2017 – July 2019)

• Academic Developer: Active Collaborative Learning
• Anglia Ruskin University, Anglia Learning & Teaching
• Office for Students Addressing Barriers to Student Success project on Scaling up Active Collaborative Learning
• Staff development supporting Team-Based Learning at scale
• Evaluation of impact of Active Collaborative Learning across three universities for students from disadvantaged groups

Previous position (October 2009 – August 2017)

• Lecturer in Bioscience
• Keele University School of Medicine, Staffordshire, UK
• Teaching scientific basis of medicine to undergraduates in the medical school
• Researcher at Keele University Institute for Science and Technology in Medicine
• Research topic: Genetics of cancer cell fate

Publications

• Rachel Berkson & Uwe Matthias Richter (2019): Can Active Collaborative Learning Improve Equality? The European Conference on Education 2019: Official Conference Proceedings. IAFOR (in preparation)
• Berkson, RG & Richter, UM (2019): Barriers to scaling up active collaborative learning Innovations in Active Learning in Higher Education Ch 7. UCL press (in press)
• Richter, UM & Berkson, RG (2019): Increasing student engagement in their learning through active collaborative learning Innovations in Active Learning in Higher Education Ch1. UCL press (in press)
• UM Richter & R Berkson (2018): Increasing student engagement in their learning through scaling up active collaborative learning INTED 2018 Proceedings p5559-5568
• Chiue, Berkson & Wright (2009): c-Myc induces changes in higher order rDNA structure on stimulation of quiescent cells Oncogene 28 1833–1842
• Berkson, Hollick et al (2005): Pilot screening programme for small molecule activators of p53 International Journal of Cancer 115 701–710
• Menéndez, Higgins et al (2003): Nuclear export inhibitor leptomycin B induces the appearance of novel forms of human Mdm2 protein British Journal of Cancer 88 636–643

Career history and achievements

2017 – 2019 Academic Developer: Active Collaborative Learning
Anglia Ruksin University, Anglia Learning & Teaching, UK

1. 2019: Senior Fellow, Higher Education Academy
2. Multi-institutional project funded by Office for Students (formerly Higher Education Funding Council for England)
3. Implementing Team-Based Learning at institutional scale in order to address disparities in educational outcomes for students from some backgrounds
4. Developing and running staff training and CPD for academics supporting teaching using Team-Based Learning
5. Promoted adoption of Team-Based Learning in new courses, including the newly opened School of Medicine (2018)
6. Mixed methods evaluation of the impact of at-scale Team-Based Learning, particularly focusing on success of students from disadvantaged backgrounds
7. Pioneered use of large-scale institutional data to analyse educational impact
8. Influencing senior management to adapt policies and procedures to fit better with Active Collaborative Learning
9. Working with various university services to identify and overcomeinstitutional barriers to change
10. Creating links between academics carrying out pedagogic research and innovating in learning and teaching
11. Research in partnership with students
12. Membership of project committee with representation from all faculties
13. Disseminating findings of project via conference presentations and peer-reviewed publications
14. Raising profile of project through social media including Twitter and institutional blogs
15. Writing regular reports contributing to project submission to funder
16. Addressing legal and research governance issues including data processing and ethical approval

2009 – 2017 Lectureship
Keele University School of Medicine and Institute for Science and Technology in Medicine, UK

1. Jewish Community Liaison Officer and member of university level Communities Together committee
2. PI of research group, Genetics of cancer cell fate
3. Supervised two PhD students, research topic: Characterisation of PLAC8, a novel cancer cell fate regulator, and The prolactin receptor in breast cancer cell fate
4. Module Lead for Yr 2 Life support (respiration) in 2018 curriculum revision
5. Module Lead for Yr 1 A complex family
6. Medical School Academic Conduct Officer
7. Member of Professionalism and Welfare committee and Athena Swan working group
8. Problem-Based Learning (PBL) tutor
9. Designed and implemented a range of assessment activities for Yr 1 and Yr 2 medical students
10. Delivered range of lectures, practicals and small group teaching to Yr 1 and Yr 2 medical students
11. 2016: Accepted as Fellow of the Higher Education Academy
12. 2016: Membership of European Association for Cancer Research
13. 2016: Presented research at European Association for Cancer Research A matter of life and cell death conference
14. 2011-2015: Academic Lead for Professional Development Tutors programme
15. 2013-2015: Lead women's interfaith discussion group
16. 2010-2015: Responsible for liaison between Medical School and Health Foundation (Medicine) course
17. 2014: Secured research funding for second PhD project
18. 2013: Achieved Keele University Teaching and Learning in Higher Education PGCert
19. 2012: Completed probation period and permanent appointment confirmed
20. 2012: Secured research funding for PhD project
21. 2011, 2012: Acting lead for disability strand of Yr 2 teaching
22. 2011: Completed St George's University of London Advanced Assessment course
23. 2010, 2011: Taught seminars for Yr 4 MPharm Cancer drugs
24. 2010: Presented research at Frontiers in Cell Biology and Medicine conference, York University
25. 2010-2012: Module Lead for Yr 2 Inputs and Outputs
26. 2009: Acting Module Lead for Yr 2 Movement (maternity cover)

2006 – 2009 Post-doctoral position
Södertörn University and Karolinska Institute, Sweden
Research topic: c-Myc, nucleoli and cancer
Supervisor: Professor Anthony Wright

1. November 2008: CASCADE European network of excellence course on Communicating research to the public and media
2. October 2008: Presented work at Swedish Epigenetics Network meeting
3. 2008: Post-doctoral funding from Cancerfonden extended for a third year
4. Spring semester 2008, 2009: Co-leader of undergraduate course Molecular Biology of the Genome, giving lectures, running "dry labs" problem-based learning sessions, and helping to set exam papers for the module
5. 2008: took part in a pilot study of small molecules targetting Myc, in collaboration with Actar drug discovery enterprise
6. August 2007: Karolinska Institute Workshop in Photomicrography
7. Techniques including mammalian cell culture, immunofluorescence, chromatin immunoprecipitation, molecular biology, chromatin conformation capture as well as standard biochemical techniques
8. Acted as informal advisor to PhD students in the lab
9. Organized group meetings and communication between group members
10. 2006: Two year guest researcher position funded by Cancerfonden (Swedish Cancer Society)

2001 – 2005 PhD studies
University of Dundee, Scotland, UK
Supervisors: Professor Sir David Lane, Professor Sonia Laín

1. June 2005: Awarded degree of PhD in Surgery & Molecular Oncology, with a thesis on Discovering novel, non-genotoxic activators of p53
2. 2003 – 2004 Taught adult education classes on World Religion at the University of Dundee
3. 2002, 2003 Presented work at scientific conferences (Oxford, UK; Lille, France)
4. 2002 Supervised undergraduate medical student lab project
5. 2001 Cancer Research UK PhD studentship

1997 – 2001 Merton College, University of Oxford

1. 2001 MBioch (First Class) – University of Oxford
2. 2001 Gibbs book prize for outstanding paper in Part II MBioch – University of Oxford
3. 2000 Wilder Penfield Prize for undergraduate achievement in science and medicine – Merton College, Oxford
4. 1999 Participated in undergraduate science programme at the Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel
   • 2 months work shadowing under the supervision of Professor Moshe Oren and Dr Tami Juven-Gershon
5. 1999 Postmastership (full scholarship) – Merton College, Oxford

1987 – 1997: Perse School for Girls, Cambridge

1. 1997 Oxford and Cambridge Examinations and Assessment Council prize for A Level French
2. 1997 5 A Levels at Grade A

Other work experience

• 2019 – Present Board member and Trustee, Beth Shalom Reform Synagogue, Cambridge
• 2017 – Present Sunday School teacher for Yr 4 and Yr 6 at Beth Shalom Reform Synagogue, Cambridge
• 2019 Led interfaith Bible Reading group at Anglia Ruskin University Chaplaincy
• 2009 – 2014 Volunteer with Dreamwidth blogging site, writing code to fix bugs, writing site documentation, and providing technical support
• 2006 Filing clerk at Board of Graduate Studies, University of Cambridge
• 2003 – 2006 Provided voluntary technical support for LiveJournal blogging site / Six Apart, including a training and supervisory rôle
• 2001 Data entry clerk at Cambridgeshire County Council Social Services Department

Interests and activities

Languages

• French (fluent)
• Swedish (proficient)
• Modern Hebrew (basic)
• German (basic)

Computers and IT

• Excellent computer skills
• Advanced user of word processing, spreadsheet and presentation software
• Familiarity with image manipulation software, particularly Adobe Photoshop, both professionally for presentation of experimental data and personally for hobby photography
• Typing 70 wpm
• Familiarity with bioinformatic and genomic web tools
• Active and advanced user of internet technologies and social media
• Have maintained a blog for 15 years and participate actively in online communities
• Competent with HTML and CSS, maintain several personal web pages
• Some experience of programming eg in Perl, Python

2009 – 2017: voluntary leadership role with Stoke-on-Trent and North Stafforshire Hebrew Congregation

• Trustee of the synagogue from 2011 with legal and financial responsibilities
• Regularly leading services
• Planning and running various social and religious events
• Religious education for adults and children
• Outreach to the local community and interfaith volunteering
• Coached two teenagers for bar mitzvah

Summer 2009 Student at Drisha institute for Jewish education, New York

• Studying traditional Jewish texts in Hebrew and English

2007 – 2009 Board member, Stockholm Progressive Judaism

• Involved in establishing a Progressive community working withing the Stockholm Jewish Community
• Leading services and discussion groups, including acting as a visiting lay leader for the Oslo and Copenhagen communities.
• Taught a series of ten adult education seminars on A Progressive perspective on the Jewish prayer book
• Coached five teenagers for bar mitzvah

2001 – 2005 Religious Affairs Officer, Dundee Hebrew Congregation

• Organizing regular synagogue events
• Committee work managing affairs of a small, under–resourced community
• Community leadership including taking services
• Relations with wider community

2001 – 2004 Treasurer, Dundee Inter Faith Association

• Member of steering committee which established a new inter faith initiative in Dundee
• Point of contact for local groups needing information about religious groups in Dundee; provided advice to public organizations about religious and ethnic diversity
• Organized various inter faith events; set up monthly dialogue meetings
• Managed society accounts and presented them for formal audit

2002 – 2004 Jewish representative for Scottish Inter Faith Council Youth section

• 2003 Part of inter faith delegation to Isle of Tiree
• 2003 Helped organize and spoke as a panellist at First Scottish Inter Faith Youth Conference

2001 – 2003 Voluntary teaching at synagogue Sunday School