Higher Ed Heroes

In this episode, we talk to Associate Professor Katelyn Barney and Professor Tracey Bunda (both from The University of Queensland) about indigenizing the curriculum. We talk about the biggest challenges educators face when embarking on this this process as well as some practical and effective steps that can guide them along the way. With special co-host Lynda Shevellar.

In this episode, we talk to Dr Michael Thai, a Lecturer in Psychology at UQ and an award-winning teacher. Michael shares how he replaced his formal consultation hours with a weekly outdoor picnic. This format enables the breaking down of barriers and a different type of conversation between students and teacher that ultimately has enabled Michael to become a better teacher.

In this episode, we talk to Carrie Finn, an experienced educational designer (Business School, The University of Queensland), about the how to design courses. Carrie not only talks about the most common mistakes uni teachers do when designing their courses, but also how to get it right by following some easy-to-implement steps.

In this episode, Al and special co-host Lynda Shevellar talk to Lindy Andren and Prof Norm Sheehan (both from the University of Queensland). Their topic is about ‘teaching as theatre’ and how – from their respective student and teacher perspectives - a particular, traumatic, but deliberately staged event in the classroom profoundly changed students’ lives. Trigger warning: this episode contains references to violence, the brutality of settler colonialism, and traumatic indigenous experiences. 

In this episode, we talk to Professor Jason Lodge (Educational Psychology and Deputy Associate Dean [Academic] in the Faculty of Humanities, Arts, and Social Sciences at The University of Queensland). Jason shares his way of allowing students to use AI as part of their essay writing which, in combination with the ‘show me your working’ concept, facilitates student learning. 

In this episode, we talk to Paul Treschman, who teaches in the School of Human Movement and Nutrition Sciences here at UQ. Paul makes his students learn according to the motto ‘apply first – explain later’ and he illustrates this through the example of a photo treasure hunt his students do on campus. 

In this episode, we talk to Associate Professor Peter Walters, who is an urban sociologist and an expert in urban community at The University of Queensland. Peter has won numerous awards for teaching excellence and has integrated film documentary making in his courses for both student learning and assessment. 

In this episode, we talk to Dr Roma Forbes. Roma is a Senior Lecturer in Physiotherapy in the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences at UQ. And one of motivations that drive her teaching is the question of how to enhance the students’ experience, in particular, how to get them better prepared for the uncertainties they will face once they join the workforce. 

In this episode, we talk to Dr Dan Levy who teaches courses in quantitative methods, policy analysis, and program evaluation in the John F Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

There are lots of worries, discussions, and myths surrounding generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), such as ChatGPT, and the impact it has on our teaching. While acknowledging these, Dan identifies the possibilities generative AI can bring to our classrooms, in particular to the way we as faculty teach and the way our students learn. 

In this episode, we talk to Dr Poh Wah Hillock. Poh is a senior lecturer in the School of Mathematics and Physics here at The University of Queensland. Facing high failure rates in her first year mathematics course, Poh has responded by specifically designing a support tutorial for her students and by using forms of community building and peer to peer support which help students bond over common struggles and, ultimately, succeed.