There’s more in the Mail

In Features this morning

Merlin Crossley (UNSW) on education-focused academics    “As I have watched the initiatives unfold in my institution I have been delighted again and again by the intended and unintended consequences.”

James Guthrie (Macquarie U) on the case of the disappearing casuals. Professor Guthrie explains how changes in reporting practise makes it hard to find how many staff in Victoria’s universities lost jobs last year. That’s staff as in people, not “full-time equivalents.”

Plus, Lyndon Megaritty makes the case for keeping the live, in-person lecture. “Learning is better and more effective when everybody is ‘present’ in the room, feels part of the one group, and the teacher can respond to the moods, preferences and questions from the class.”

And Rhiannon Lee White (Western Sydney U) reports on the opportunities COVID-19 created. “the way we teach on campus and the way we teach on-line are not the same. Instead, we need flexibility; flexibility to create the best learning experiences, whatever they may be, however long they go for, and via whatever mode or platform works best for each activity.” It’s a new addition to Contributing Editor Sally Kift’s celebrated series, Needed Now in Teaching and Learning.