Becoming a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy: Andrew Wills

Dr Andrew Wills is Reader in Physical Materials Chemistry (UCL Chemistry). Between 2012-2015 he was the department’s first Director of Studies as well as being Chair of its Teaching Committee.

Which UCL Arena pathway did you follow?

I followed UCL Arena Open and am now a Senior Fellow.

What was your motivation?

As Director of Studies, I wanted to get up to speed quickly with modern education concerns and practice, and be best able to promote the benefits of the Arena process to others in the department.

What was the most useful element?

Having open and often eye-opening conversations across disciplines.

Attending UCL Arena sessions provide a rare chance to talk with others from different niches of the university about their approaches to teaching and working with students.

How has it changed your teaching?

It has broadened my view of student perspectives.

Particularly, the development of higher education over recent years and how we give students effective opportunities to think and reflect on their learning experiences as they continue through their studies. UCL Arena helped to initiate that conversation amongst a group of inspiring and remarkable colleagues.

I also found the discussions of assessment and feedback approaches helpful, as they helped me create a focus on the idea that as teachers we must provide ‘feedforward’ to students about their work so that they can build on their skills with each submission. Talking about the broader challenges of how we do this effectively and discussing methods was both helpful and exciting.

And, as I am personally interested in e-learning, these conversations helped me think about and shape new methods of digital assessment, such as peer marking.

What would you say to someone considering working towards a UCL Arena/Higher Education Academy Fellowship?

To those starting out in their careers, UCL Arena can help build a network of colleagues to share ideas and experiences with.

For probationary staff, it clarifies the context of modern teaching and, more specifically, exemplifies and makes real UCL’s philosophy of research-based education.

Experienced teachers will find UCL Arena an opportunity to refresh their teaching and find new ideas to make their teaching more effective – to save time, create better workflows for themselves and their students, and explore new ways of helping students grow.