STEM
Resources and advice for academics and students in the fields of science, technology, engineering and maths
How practical education and talent management support medical students
A practice-oriented focus together with personalised talent support lead to success in medical education for local and international students. Here, Alán Alpár explains …
Campus interview: Mike Ibba of Chapman University on mentorship and the future of US…
In this video podcast Mike Ibba, dean of Schmid College of Science and Technology at Chapman University, talks about undergraduate research, what philosophers…
THE podcast: how to do public engagement
What is best practice for universities’ public engagement? How do you enlist the public in your research? And how do you keep them interested in the…
Nurturing advanced problem-solving skills with integrated projects
Integrated projects can be a powerful tool for bolstering problem-solving capabilities and encouraging students to integrate knowledge from various courses
One write way to student success in mathematics
A detailed conversation and a letter begin a support process that can take students from repeated course failure to success and confidence. Here, Eric Grinberg explains how it…
Messy decisions and creative science in the classroom
How can we teach students other than those studying for healthcare or other vocational qualifications to work across disciplinary boundaries and make scientific decisions in a…
How to teach clinical communication skills in a foreign language from scratch
This hands-on approach to clinical practice integrates content and language and enables both local and international students to acquire communication skills…
A case study in developing the next STEM generation
University ‘taster days’ can introduce teenagers to what global health research and advocacy might be like as a future career. Here four academics describe a pilot…
How to use humour to boost student understanding and foster creativity
Humour is a versatile teaching tool, explains Pete Ludovice. It’s fun, it makes the lecturer seem more approachable, helps make complex concepts relatable, shifts cognitive …
A checklist for advancing equity, diversity and inclusion in medical sciences and education,…
Three questions that medical sciences lecturers should ask when revising curricula to promote ethical considerations, an understanding of health…
Lessons learned from a fellowship year as a dentist and early career researcher
Winning a fellowship as a dentist and spending a year in Graz as an international scholar not only taught me about the profession but also fostered my self-awareness,…
What is needed to run a successful outreach programme?
Lessons on running a successful outreach programme designed to spark school pupils’ interest in university, based on a 13-year project focused on getting…
A checklist for advancing equity, diversity and inclusion in medical sciences and education,…
Three questions that lecturers in medical sciences should ask when revising their curricula to promote diverse representation and health equity
How mentor and mentee can help each other
Mentorship is a symbiotic relationship. Here, two scientists look at steps in the meeting process and benefits from both sides
Inclusivity versus devotion to the cult of STEM
Is an underlying global STEM culture of devotion getting in the way of a more inclusive academy, asks Andrew Pye
How to promote primary interest in basic medical education at the undergraduate level
A major challenge for educators is to present the theoretical beauty of medicine to students who have a broad spectrum of prior experience, ability and motivation –…
How to make dual-enrolment programmes work
Dual enrolment can create student pipelines from high school to university, meet community education needs and improve retention and graduation rates. Here, …
Medical teaching resources need to represent all skin colours to enable doctors to serve a diverse…
Medical education must diversify its learning resources away from a focus solely on white patients to prepare students to diagnose and treat patients of all ethnicities, …
What are the barriers to success for under-represented early career researchers in maths,…
Recommendations for improving equity, diversity and inclusion in maths, physics, computer science and engineering, based on research into the barriers…
Ways to improve the equitable inclusion of LGBTQ+ people in research and higher education
A summary of actions universities and research bodies should take to create truly equitable, inclusive environments for LGBTQ+ staff and students
Unifying theoretical and clinical education in a medical curriculum
A focus on practical competences comes with the risk that theoretical knowledge will be sidelined during the clinical years. However, two-way vertical integration of…
Social justice as part of medical education
Five strategies universities can adopt to aid medical students’ understanding of and engagement with social justice principles as part of healthcare training
How medical education can benefit from global challenges
Worldwide crises, such as a pandemic or healthcare costs in ageing Western societies, often centre on medical education and require it to adapt quickly. So, what can a…
THE podcast: when pop culture meets academia
Can superheroes teach us about physics? What can studying Kylie Minogue tell us about gender politics? Two academics talk about the intersection of popular …
Why learning to listen will help you avoid ‘helicopter research’ and make you a better science…
A year of failed fieldwork in Africa led Sallie Burrough to ask questions about how researchers interact with the societies they work in. Here, she shares five tips for…
Generation Z presents new challenges for medical education
Digitally savvy and adapted to rapid change, this cohort of future doctors needs emotional support and help managing expectations and setbacks
Being elitist about sci-comms damages science
Scientists, if you communicate only with people at your own level of expertise, how will you recruit the best and brightest, engage the public and change the world? Kylie Ahern takes…
The House Cup: promoting qualitative grading in mathematics
Using qualitative instead of numerical grading in mathematics supports meaningful feedback that helps students improve the quality of their work, Jean…
What does a 21st-century research and science system look like?
Jim Metson explores what is needed from universities and government to create a transformative research, science and innovation sector in New Zealand
A robust complaints process for students working in NHS placements
Students training as health and social care workers must be supported to speak up about complaints or concerns from practice settings. Helen Carr outlines a clear process
A unique approach to designing robust, calculation-based online assessments
Designing open-book, online assessments for subjects relying on calculation poses a challenge to educators. Amit Navin Jinabhai presents a model he has successfully…
Decolonising learning through access to primary sources
Mathematicians have always looked at old problems in new ways. A database of original sources will give university-level mathematics students a global, historical view of …
When to use online laboratories for STEM teaching and why
A guide to help STEM educators understand which aspects of practical laboratory learning can most effectively be delivered online and the benefits of this approach
How can we help academia produce more women entrepreneurs?
The key change required to help female academics found spin-out companies is rebalancing the gender diversity of the investment community, but universities…
Teaching within virtual reality worlds: what, why and when
Gary Burnett offers five pointers on when and how teaching in virtual reality worlds can successfully enhance learning
Whole-task learning using real world simulations: a guide
A guide to creating and delivering a whole-task learning model using goal-based scenarios and hybrid simulation, by Michael Daly
Home labs and simulations to spark curiosity and exploration
Francesco Fornetti explains how home lab kits and simulation tools can help spark curiosity and exploration among engineering students
Helping students see biology within a broader context
Should educators help students understand their chosen subjects within a broader context of learning? Mark Coleman has been experimenting with this in …
Address STEM inequality by reconceiving merit
The cultural yardsticks used to measure merit in STEM are warped with bias and often devalue women, people of colour and LGBTQ+ scientists with records equal to white…
Foundations to lay when teaching computational and data skills
Traditional teaching in data analysis focuses on statistics and visualisation but an emphasis on foundational data and computational skills is needed to prepare students …
Running a diverse team is harder work – but the rewards are immense
John Womersley managed more than 50 nationalities on a €3 billion science project. Here, he reflects on the experience and gives tips on getting the most out of a…
Helping students tackle terminology barriers
Lots of new terminology can leave students feeling overwhelmed. Sonja Dunbar shares one way to build student confidence when encountering discipline…
Creating a bioscience toolkit for first year students
Chinedu Agwu shares advice on supporting first-year students to develop the core skills and knowledge they need to succeed in a bioscience course
10 ways universities can tackle gender inequality
Ellie Bothwell outlines recommendations from THE’s recent report on how universities around the world are performing on gender equality
Why and how to build awareness of cultural sensitivity in healthcare curricula
Why and how to adjust curricula to take account of cultural sensitivities relating to the discipline being taught, taking healthcare as an example
Make mathematics fun and easy to learn for university students
Make mathematics fun and engaging by creating a warm and welcoming class environment and applying lessons to real-life contexts, Pattama Sornkao explains
Using online and blended learning tools to teach data science skills
Advice on teaching data science skills using online and blended learning tools and resources, by Philip Leftwich
Are STEM admissions processes hindering our diversity efforts?
The requirement for potential STEM students to have studied traditionally related subjects such as maths and physics seems outdated and unnecessary, says Judy Raper
How to support women of all ages in post-secondary science education
Mature female students face barriers to success in STEM subjects, but steps can be taken to address this. Liette Vasseur explains what needs to be done
Video makes the coding star: teaching problem-solving in bite-sized chunks online
Aidan McGowan explains how converting practical coding ‘labs’ into a series of short videos taking students through the problems step-by-step has improved learning outcomes
