2021 Successful Teaching and Learning Grants

We received a total of 42 applications for the 2021 ACDS Teaching and Learning Grants Scheme. This is an outstanding outcome that indicates a strong demand for this funding, especially since the OLT schemes were discontinued. The Panel was impressed by the quality of applications and the variety of projects put forward. They had a hard job to decide on their outcomes.

The following four projects will be funded in 2021 to a total of $80,000:

Enabling Student Success through Teaching for Diversity in STEM – Lisa Godinho (The University of Melbourne) and Reva Ramiah (Curtin University)

This project will enable faculties of science to take responsibility for understanding how conventional pedagogy continues to perpetuate inequitable teaching practices. This project will

• Conduct a national survey to understand challenges and opportunities for inclusive teaching in STEM.
• Propose Australian higher education STEM inclusive pedagogy good practice guidelines.
• Create a reflective tool to guide academics in assessing their identities in relation to their current teaching practices.
• Propose a framework for a multi‐level approach (faculty leadership; teaching and support staff; and administrators) to normalise inclusive pedagogy in STEM higher education courses.
• Curate a range of learning and teaching resources on inclusive STEM pedagogy in Australia as exemplars of good practice.

The Agricultural Corridor – Suresh Krishnasamy, Millicent Smith, Edward Narayan, and Ammar Abdul Aziz (The University of Queensland)

This project aims to develop a prototype of field trip application that gives students the ability to navigate the vast agricultural landscape in the region between Brisbane and beyond Toowoomba city.  The outcomes of this project will include

• The development of an agriculture application that can be used as a framework and launching pad for future development
• A template that will be expanded to include other locations along what we call the “agriculture corridor”. 

BioLab Collective – an Australian Laboratory Skills Video Library for the Molecular Biosciences – Jack Wang (The University of Queensland)

The outcomes of this project will include:

• A novel library of laboratory demonstration videos focusing on experimental skills and techniques taught across molecular biosciences programs.
• A laboratory skills training framework – designed in collaboration with Bioscience educators from across ACDS member institutions – that highlights common mistakes and theoretical misconceptions for foundational laboratory techniques.
• Best-practice guidelines relating to online and blended delivery of laboratory experiences, which will be disseminated through ACDS publications and workshops.

Driving Innovation in Chemistry Worldwide through the Creation of an Augmented Realty App (ARCHEM) – Michelle Spencer and Oliver Jones (RMIT)

This project aims to:

• Develop stable augmented reality app (ARChem) downloadable for free from the App Store (iOS) or Google Play (Android) and via the Microsoft HoloLens. This app will be used to teach chemistry at the undergraduate (UG) and senior Secondary School levels. The app will unlock extra information and rich leaning materials that will enhance student learning outcomes through increased engagement and interactivity. 
• Develop Learning materials/activities and lesson plans for using the ARChem app in the classroom. 
• Publish A journal article in the Journal of Chemical Education detailing the development of the app and its use in the classroom. 
• Develop a design centred, student focussed framework for developing future similar apps in Chemistry or other scientific fields. 

Congratulations to the winners, and thank you to all applicants for your commitment to improving science and mathematics education. There will be another opportunity to apply for funds in 2022.

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