The Australian Awarded University Teacher’s Network

How do we create effective hybrid learning environments through innovations in technology and inclusive practices?

2 October, 2024

Dr Nathan Boase (QUT) 2023 AAUT Award Winner

Thursday 10^th October 2024 8-9am (ACDT)

Hosted by the Teaching Innovation Unit, and the Australian Awards for University Teaching

Abstract

Students embarking on the study of Chemistry are met with a totally new way of communicating. The myriad of symbols, letters, dots, and lines, which provide great chemical meaning to an expert, can be as meaningless to new students. My teaching philosophy is to take a contemporary approach in chemistry education that puts the individual needs of the students front and centre. Through design of active and inclusive learning activities, supported by new learning technologies, I aim to create hybrid learning environments that engage all learners, so they can become independent learners. In this presentation I aim to share my experiences, and hopefully ask how we can continue to do better for our students and ourselves?

In this presentation I will detail my experience in creating personalised learning environments, using both technology and active learning in the classroom. I will detail how I have used an adaptive learning technology to support self-driven learning outside of the classroom, and the quantifiable positive effect it has had on students in terms of both grades but as learners. Technology alone can’t solve the challenges, and I will discuss how I have evolved classroom activities in a foundational first year chemistry class to promote active and engaged learning, and the positive outcomes it has had on students and staff alike.

Finally, we must ensure we meet the needs of all students in our classroom and celebrate the diversity of experiences that make a strong educational community. Personalised learning technology can help to meet the diverse needs of learners in the classroom, but we can also be active in diversifying how we teach and learn together. I will detail my early experience in bringing First Nations Australian’s knowledge of Chemistry into our foundational chemistry courses, the value it has on student learning, and the impact it has had on me as an educator.

Presenter Biography

Nathan R. B. Boase is a senior lecturer at the Queensland University of Technology, and co-leader of the Medicinal Molecules and Materials Group. He has been teaching and coordinating courses at QUT since 2016, with experience across the chemistry curriculum, but with a strong focus on the first-year cohort. He has Scholarship of Learning and Teaching experience in how technology can enhance science education. In 2019 he was recognized as a CAS Future Leader in chemistry, in 2023 as an AIPS QLD Tall Poppy, and in 2024 received an AAUT Citation for outstanding contributions to student learning.

Watch the recording here