{"id":3120,"date":"2025-11-14T12:18:06","date_gmt":"2025-11-14T12:18:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/itl\/?p=3120"},"modified":"2026-04-02T10:08:05","modified_gmt":"2026-04-02T09:08:05","slug":"seeing-the-whole-picture-optometry-feedback-and-finding-your-own-path","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.manchester.ac.uk\/itl\/2025\/11\/14\/seeing-the-whole-picture-optometry-feedback-and-finding-your-own-path\/","title":{"rendered":"Seeing the Whole Picture: Optometry, Feedback, and Finding Your Own Path"},"content":{"rendered":"

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\"Picture<\/p>\n

Fatima is an Optometrist, Lecturer in Optometry at the University of Manchester and a Fellow of AdvanceHe. With over a decade’s experience of delivering clinical teaching and assessments at her alma matter, she contributes to BSc and MSci Optometry programmes. She is the Clinic Lead for Final Year Contact Lens Clinic and part of the Education Sub-committee of the British & Irish University and College Contact Lens Educators (BUCCLE). She is actively involved with teaching across five course units and patient-facing clinics across all levels of the Optometry programmes and recently received the Teaching Excellence Award for \u201cAssessment & Feedback\u201d and \u201cInclusive Education\u201d. Currently undertaking PgCert Medical & Health Education, she has also been awarded the Divisional “Teacher of the Year Award” and been commended for her “Outstanding contribution to equality, diversity and inclusion” via the University’s Making a Difference Awards.<\/p>\n

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An unexpected journey into academia<\/h5>\n

By her own admission, Fatima Malik\u2019s career in academia didn\u2019t follow the traditional route. \u201cI wasn\u2019t planning to be an academic,\u201d she explains. \u201cI just knew I enjoyed teaching, to help others understand what I had learnt.\u201d Now a Lecturer in Optometry at the University of Manchester, and the lead for the university\u2019s contact lens clinic, Fatima has spent years blending clinical expertise with an empathetic, student-focused approach to education. It\u2019s a journey that\u2019s been about more than optometry. It\u2019s been about people.<\/p>\n

Fatima\u2019s connection to the University of Manchester stretches back to her days on the Manchester Access Programme (MAP), which supports students from underrepresented backgrounds into higher education. \u201cFunnily enough, my staff ID still uses the same photo from my time on MAP,\u201d she laughs. After qualifying as an optometrist, Fatima worked in community practice, where her passion for teaching quickly showed itself. \u201cFriends would often come to me when they didn\u2019t understand something, not because I was necessarily the best at it, but because I enjoyed talking things through with them.\u201d<\/p>\n

When a research optometrist role at the university came up, she applied, even though she didn\u2019t have a research background. \u201cI didn\u2019t get the job, but I must have done something right in the interview, because they invited me to supervise in the student clinics instead.\u201d That door opened a whole new career. Starting as a visiting clinical tutor one day a week, Fatima continued to spend the rest of her time in practice. The blend of practical experience feeding directly into clinical teaching helped her students connect theory with real-world application. \u201cBecause I was only recently qualified, I could relate to the students. They\u2019d ask things like, \u2018What was your first day in practice like?\u2019 or \u2018What should I focus on after graduation?\u2019\u201d.<\/p>\n

That closeness to the student experience shaped her teaching style, moving beyond simply delivering content to providing mentorship. \u201cI still find myself naturally siding with students sometimes and feeling for them. It\u2019s important we remember what it felt like; balancing deadlines, feeling overwhelmed, finding your way.\u201d<\/p>\n

Teaching Through Empathy, Feedback, and Psychological Safety<\/h5>\n

But Fatima\u2019s approach goes beyond just empathy. Feedback\u2014giving it, receiving it, encouraging it\u2014has become central to her teaching philosophy.
\u201cWe\u2019re used to giving feedback to students. But how often do we pause to ask: are they really hearing us? Are we actually helping them?\u201d she reflects. \u201cEnd-of-unit surveys can be useful, but by then it\u2019s often too late to help that particular cohort. Ideally, I want to know now, whilst I can still make a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n

That means creating multiple routes for feedback: anonymous surveys, informal conversations, or even simple show-of-hands checks at the end of a session. And it\u2019s not just students she asks\u2014Fatima regularly gathers feedback from staff, receptionists, and clinical tutors too. \u201cThe more I moved into leadership, I found myself less in clinic and teaching room and the more essential feedback became to help me to continue to see how things really played out and to know where things can improve for students, patients and staff.\u201d<\/p>\n

This openness ties into psychological safety, a topic she has spoken about in international webinars for the International Association of Contact Lens Educators (IACLE). \u201cIf students and staff feel safe to speak up, to give honest feedback or even make mistakes, they learn more deeply. I try to model that by being open about my own mistakes and what I\u2019m still learning. It shows them that we\u2019re all on a lifelong learning journey.\u201d<\/p>\n

One idea Fatima has introduced to her teaching is the application of The Hero\u2019s Journey, the narrative framework popularised by Joseph Campbell, which Fatima has applied to the teaching and learning she does. \u201cWe usually associate it with stories or films,\u201d she explains, \u201cbut I started seeing its relevance in healthcare and education. The student is the hero, \u2018crossing the threshold\u2019 into a new, unknown world at university and facing challenges. Exams become the monsters to slay. We, as educators, act as \u2018mentors\u2019 guiding and supporting them.\u201d
This framework humanises assessment and feedback, reframing them for both staff and students as part of a bigger growth process. \u201cFeedback isn\u2019t about ticking boxes; it\u2019s like a mirror that helps the other see their strengths and areas to develop.\u201d<\/p>\n

Helping Students See Beyond the Classroom<\/h5>\n

Fatima is also passionate about helping students see education as more than just a route to a job\u2014encouraging them instead to take it as a chance to grow, be curious, and find their own path, even if it\u2019s not the one they originally imagined. \u201cSometimes students think it\u2019s a straight path: degree to career, but life isn\u2019t always that linear. Interests change, new opportunities arise, and it\u2019s important to leave yourself open to those possibilities.\u201d She uses her own story as an example. \u201cI applied for a job I wasn\u2019t really qualified for, and I didn\u2019t get. But applying opened another door that led me to where I am now. If I hadn\u2019t knocked, that path wouldn\u2019t have opened.\u201d<\/p>\n

Whether it\u2019s through feedback, mentorship, or simply being open about her own learning journey, Fatima\u2019s message is clear: education isn\u2019t just about what you learn, but who you become in the process.
For students in optometry, that might involve mastering complex clinical skills. But it\u2019s also about learning how to communicate, how to reflect, how to work as part of a team, and how to shape your own future.<\/p>\n

And if you\u2019re in Manchester and need an eye exam or contact lenses? The Optometry Clinics where Fatima teaches offer free, fully supervised appointments with students. \u201cA shameless plug,\u201d she smiles, \u201cbut one that helps students get real experience while helping others see more clearly.\u201d It\u2019s a perfect metaphor for her whole approach to education\u2014helping students see what\u2019s possible, one conversation at a time.<\/p>\n

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Related<\/h1>\n

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Contact Us<\/h4>\n

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+44 (0) 161 306 6000<\/p>\n

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Find Us<\/h4>\n

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