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Email

[email protected]

Location

Waterford

Campus

Cork Road campus

  • Room name or number D20
  • Phone +353 51 834029

Biography

I am a Lecturer in Management at Waterford Institute of Technology, lecturing on a number of undergraduate programmes within the School of Business.  Over the past fifteen years, I have developed an interest in management communications for business students and taught modules in Professional Development and Learning Skills including Professional Oral and Written Communications.

In 2007 I became co-ordinator of the College and Community Option, placing students as part of the Flexible Semester, offered to our (Hons) Business Degree Students.

In 2017 I became Programme Leader on the Cert in Supervisory Management.

In 2018 I became Programme Leader on th Diploma in Supervisory Practice.

My educational qualifications includes:

  • Bachelor of Business (Hons) Degree from W.I.T. 
  • M.B.A. in W.I.T. 
  • EdD in Higher Education at the University of Sheffield in the UK 

I currently lecture on the following programmes:

BBS (Hons) Year 1, 3     
Ba Accounting Year 1,2
Cert in Supervisory Management                                                                                                              Diploma in Supervisory Practice
Ba in International Business
Ba Finance and Investment

 

I believe that students perform at a higher level when they are actively engaged in their learning environment. In promoting this collaborative approach I have developed skills and methods that I as a lecturer use to encourage peer learning.  

My teaching style is active with students working in small groups, communicating with their peers in order to create an interesting open classroom where ideas are shared, developed and co-constructed with their peers. In working in this environment it is hoped that the students develop their communication skills gaining the confidence to interact and contribute in class discussions.

I now  also lecture in the Blended Learning Evironment recognising the merits of this learning style for those who need to manage both work, family and other committments,  while continuing to upskill  in a supported flexible  and accessible learning space.

I am currently the Programme Leader on both the Cert in Supervisory Managment and the Diploma in Supervisory Practice both of which are delivered through the Blended Learning Emvironment.

During the Doctoral process I attended many workshops which have helped broaden and develop my own research skills.

Research areas focus on: peer learning, reflection and the use of collaborative practice in the higher education classroom. Papers presented over the last few years reflect this focus.

I.A.M.  Conference  2014 - Through the Looking Glass: A participant observer’s perspective of Collaborative Learning in a Higher Education Classroom.

I.A.M. Conference 2013 - How has Collaborative Learning developed in the Higher Education Classroom?

W.I.T. Research Day 2011- Making sense of learning from experience:  Facilitating reflective practice in an undergraduate work placement programme.

I.A.M.2010 - Identifying the Learning Moment: Exploring the value of reflective logs in an undergraduate placement programme Paper.

I.A.M. 2009 - College and Community: An alternative Approach to Undergraduate Learning.

 

Current research interests are still focused on collaborative learning, with particular focus on the development, implementation and enactment of collaborative  practices in the higher education setting.

Other interests  include blended learning environments and the future focus of these online learning spaces.

Prior to joining the Business School, I worked in various positions in industry for ten years in a variety of organisations in the construction sector. These included Industrial Electrical Contractors and Heavy and Light Engineering Companies.