Biography
I am a dedicated education professional with experience in supporting and leading initiatives in technology enhanced learning to enhance the learning experience of students at South East Technological University. Over my 12 years working in universities in the Netherlands and Ireland, I have taught academic skills up to PhD level, developed fully online and blended accredited courses, taught on the Masters in Education programme at my current institution and introduced innovative and engaging digital technologies to lecturers and students.
A large part of my role sees me interact with and support lecturers equipping me with a keen sense of their needs in a demanding and evolving educational technology landscape. My role also requires that I keep abreast of the latest developments in educational technology. To this end, I have become proficient in utilising and advising upon the ethical use of AI in education. I have also taken a keen interest in the emerging field of micro-credentials particularly from a policy and practice perspective. I am an active member of the European Commission Digital Education Hub Squad on Micro-credentials where I have co-authored a paper on a Maturity Model for Micro-credentials.
I currently lead out the SETU Community of Practice which allows me to see first had the challenges lectures face and the innovative solutions they implement so that these developments can be disseminated among the burgeoning SETU community of practice as well as the wider SETU community. I am research active having authored and co-authored 6 publications in the past 3 years.
I have achieved status of Fellow from Advance HE and am currently pursuing my doctorate with the SETU Postgraduate Business School.
I have lectured on the Masters of Education in Teaching and Learning on the Blended Learning module in Existing & Emerging Technologies and have lectured in Academic Writing and Online Education in Maastricht University.
I have a keen interest in conducting research on the effectiveness of teaching and learning in virtual immersive environments with a focus on pedagogy and learner perceptions. I co-ordinated the construction of the Delft University of Technology Minecraft campus which sought to connect geographically distanced students and harness the pedagogical affordances of this environment. More recently I have been looking into ways of integrating Gather.Town, a virtual 3D conferencing tool which allows users to interact with each other and the environment, into accredited courses at SETU.
I am involved in several European projects on micro-credentials and have published papers on micro-credentials focusing on design and pedagogical considerations as well as accreditation and am currently an EU Hub Squad member for micro-credentials development.
Publications:
Face-to-face to online: PhD academic writing @Maastricht University
Scaling the Recognition of Prior Learning for greater access and inclusion for lifelong learners
Using digital learning to foster digital competencies of basic skills teachers; Establishing a pathway for accreditation
Exploratory Research Report on Professional Development for Teachers of Basic Skills.
Micro-credentials & Digital Badges: Definitions, Affordances and Design Considerations for Application in Higher Education Institutions
Using digital learning to foster digital competencies of basic skills teachers; establishing a pathway for collaborative micro-credential development as part of an Erasmus+ project
Understanding and Embedding Diversity in an Irish University.
I hold two masters degrees in education related subjects. I have a solid theoretical background in technology enhanced learning, having completed a second masters’ degree in this subject matter in 2019. My main focus is on pedagogy in the online domain and I have recently been appointed to the European HUB Squad on micro-credentials which seeks to promote growth and awareness of micro-credentials in Europe.
I have achieved the status of Fellow from Advance HE. The Fellowship process enabled me to demonstrate commitment to teaching, learning and the student experience, through engagement in a practical process encouraging research, reflection and development
I am currently working on my doctorate at the Postgraduate Business School at SETU