I have demonstrated during a few practical labs and I've also done some essay marking before. But this was the first time I was demonstrating on a fieldcourse. It was so much fun, I loved it!

It was a week long marine ecology residential fieldcourse, very hands on. We were based at a field centre on the Great Cumbrae island, which many people associate with its only town - Millport. There is a variety of marine habitats easily accessible there, with sandy, muddy and rocky shores with different levels of exposure. Perfect for research and teaching.

There were several PIs and three demonstrators (including me).  Each of us had their own group of students to supervise; there were four students in mine. I have to say that I was rather impressed by the commitment of the vast majority of the students. Thankfully my group was no exception, they were all hard working and keen young scientists. There is nothing quite the same as watching young people learn and enjoy the process, watching them figure out problems and improve, gain confidence and learn from their mistakes. I like teaching!

Even though I enjoyed the course a lot, I found some aspects of it a bit tricky from a logistics, lets call it, point of view. I think it deserves a separate post, so keep your eyes peeled.