Teaching fits hand in glove with research: my research flavours my teaching, and students play a vital role in the research that I do. I particularly enjoy working with students in the field on our Behavioural Ecology Field Course, and when on expedition to places like Sinai in Egypt and Pulau Tioman in Malaysia.

Students at work with Kate Durrant on our field course in Portugal, and with David Feary discussing projects in Pulau Tioman, Malaysia.

Curriculum transformation

Starting in 2023, I have led a project to re-write all the undergraduate programmes in Life Sciences at Nottingham. Starting with a blank piece of paper, we’ve taken an evidence-based approach, engaging with employers, alumni and current students to identify the attributes our graduates will need in the future workplace. We’ve then used programme-level design principles to build a suite of more than 60 brand new modules across 11 degree subjects. These courses will be taken by more than 500 students per year, starting in Autumn 2026.

Pedagogic research

My colleagues and I are always keen to take an evidence-based approach to our teaching. A particular interest of mine is the teaching of statistics. Stats are vital for biologists, but students often lack confidence or interest in the subject. I have been working on a project (Transform Statistics) with Lindsey Leach at the University of Birmingham to bring together teachers from subjects across the arts and sciences to discuss the challenges of teaching stats. Our aim is to identify and develop resources which students can exploit alongside conventional lectures to overcome the challenges they face.

Students with Francis Gilbert, on expedition in the Sinai desert, Egypt.