Time

Presenters

1:00-1:10pm

Welcome and opening remarks

Elise Gear

1:10 – 1:35pm

Talk 1 - The Use of Emojis and Gifs in Online Teaching to Foster Student Engagement

Online teaching presents new challenges in satisfying students’ needs. For example, when successful, online teaching can be effective in minimising procrastination (Kang & Zhang, 2020) and reaching students in complex environments (e.g., students with childcare responsibilities; Redmond et al., 2018). When unsuccessful, online teaching can deter attendance (Nieuwoudt, 2020) and lower motivation (Xu et al., 2020). Emojis (static pictograms depicting emotion or sentiment) and gifs (graphic images depicting pop culture references) are popularly used within online communication (Tang & Hew, 2019) and are being increasingly used within online teaching (Darby, 2020). Drawing upon my own experiences of online and blended teaching since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as two quantitative studies I have conducted, the use of emojis and gifs within online teaching and whether these foster student engagement will be discussed.

Dr. Beatrice Hayes (Psychology Department)

1:35 – 2:00pm

Talk 2 – Student Engagement in Language Classes

The pandemic has significantly impacted and changed student engagement. This paper will study the different types of engagement with language classes showed by students in 1^st year, second and final year from 2020 to 2022, when studying fully online (2021 term 2) or fully in person (2021-2022). Age and level will be taken into consideration in order to understand attendance data. While highlighting what could be maintained from online teaching, this talk will put the emphasis on the benefits of in person teaching: its impact on student well-being in particular, and on student improvement in the target language.

Dr Marion Joassin (Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures)

2:00 – 2.25pm

Talk 3 – The Wellbeing of Staff Whilst Teaching During the Pandemic: The Challenges and Assets

Teaching in higher education during the COVID-19 pandemic required prompt adaptation and familiarisation to hybrid teaching. Leading to an increase in workload and a constant need to adapt teaching style to governmental guidelines and online platforms. For many members of staff (and students), working from home blurred the boundaries that were once set to separate home and work life. Whilst this provided great joy (from showing off pets on camera and the occasional cat filter), for some the end of the workday didn’t necessarily mean the end of work. This talk will expand on the both challenges and positive assets of teaching during COVID-19 and the impacts this has had on our mental health

Dr Vanita Chamdal (Psychology Department)