Samantha Cuthbert

As an accomplished educator, Sam has been referred to on several occasions as ‘niche’. This is due to her range of experience and knowledge across a variety of different areas within the educational sector.

Sam began her working career in the field of Media, completing a BA Hons in Media and TV Production. After completing several different media projects, she then embarked upon her teaching career.

Beginning in a role of a Teaching Assistant, she quickly gained her QTS by 2009. She went on to teach within the Primary phase, taking on a number of different co-ordinator roles including English, Science, ICT and Business and Enterprise.

After a number of years working in UK schools, she decided to take her teaching skills into the international sector working in Dubai and Cairo. She held a number of positions including Head of Key Stage 2 and Assistant Head of Primary in large international schools. Throughout the years her varying roles included responsibilities for pastoral, curriculum, teaching and learning, assessment and mentoring. Whilst working in the international sector, Sam completed all training to be a BSO Inspector and completed her MA in Educational Leadership and Management.

In 2020, after a return to the UK, she joined the International Initial Teacher Training Team at University of Sunderland, where she continues to work to the present day. Sam currently work across the international PGCE course and the UK-based SCITT course, in partnership with GORSE SCITT. Throughout the four years, Sam has had various different roles including Personal Academic Tutor, Module Leader for Subject
Studies and Module Leader for MA module EDPM01 (SCITT). As of 2024, she is leading the M97 Action research MA module. In 2022, Sam embarked upon the exciting journey of starting her own company Next Gen Teaching to bring together these varied experiences and design high-quality professional learning qualifications. All qualifications at Next Gen Teaching have a foundation in the DfE education policies for England and Wales, with a key focus on the Teachers’ Standards for assessment frameworks, but bring an
international perspective to the design and delivery. All qualifications are designed to support the continued professional learning of educators across both the UK and International schools, ensuring that all teachers are current with the latest developments in pedagogical approaches to teaching and learning.

Sam continues to be a practicing BSO Inspector and regularly travels as part of inspection teams to complete BSO Inspections. Due to her knowledge and experience of both BSO and ITT, Sam was recently assigned into an iQTS inspection team as part of the DfE’s pilot inspection programme for iQTS providers.

Sam has brought together these different skills and experiences, along with her passion and commitment to supporting professionals, to design and deliver high-quality professional learning opportunities across a range of contexts.