Skype

Hello again.

I've just set myself up with a university Skype account, the intention being to use it to support students who are away from campus for whatever reason. I've no idea whether this will be popular or not, but I like trying new things and anything that makes people feel supported and less isolated is clearly a good thing.

What I'll do next is come up with a schedule of the days and times when I'll offer Skype sessions (I'll take advice from your lecturers to ensure it doesn't clash with key lectures) and then publicise it through BREO announcements, lecture drop ins and the blog.

If you've got any immediate thoughts on this idea then email me or leave a comment at the bottom of this post. Do remember that you'll need to sign in before you can comment though.
What I'd ideally like to know is do you use Skype already and would you potentially use it for library appointment purposes?

Hope you're enjoying your Summer,

Alan

Peer to peer learning

I've always seen it as a sign of self confidence when students say 'I don't know how to do that', whatever the 'that' might be. It takes courage to admit what you lack. The temptation is to bluff it but that isn't really a long term solution. One way forward is through peer to peer learning which is purely a fancy way of saying let's give students the opportunity to learn from each other. 


Many of you do this already but I'm keen to promote it more. One thing I'm trying to increase are the number of teaching sessions which involve students from multiple courses. So what you might find is when you ask me for a one to one teaching session it'll become a one to two instead and include someone else who you may not know. So far these have been really interesting sessions as students have sometimes advised each other on possible solutions to problems without me needing to intervene. And I learn something new in the process.

The best teaching sessions always involve an exchange of ideas, so if you end up taking part in one of these small groups I hope it benefits you.

Reminder of my next workshop

Hello.

I'll be in training room 1 (TR1) in the library on Wednesday afternoon from 2pm until 3pm.

You can turn up at any point during the hour and ask me questions about anything you like.
Not geography though, as I'm rubbish at it.

But anything else is fine.