How can you provide a hands-on experience of the proper way to use a pipette, without having access to an actual pipette? The past few months tossed many curveballs at us, however, for science educators one of the biggest challenges was transforming the lab environment to online settings. There are so many facets to lab work, including technical aspects that involve the use of specialised machinery, as well as behavioural aspects relating to problem solving and teamwork in a demanding environment. UNE science lecturers have had a couple of months to design processes that otherwise would have taken years. They aced this challenge using a high degree of creativity and quick upskilling, providing an excellent student experience. This virtual tour gives you a student view, including hands-on Moodle experience of some of the resources designed for online practicals and intensive schools.
Dr Gal Winter is a microbiologist studying microbial ecology in human and plant environments. For the past four years Gal has been working as a lecturer and Course Coordinator for the Bachelor of Biomedical Sciences at the University of New England. Gal has won several awards for excellence in teaching and research and has published her research outcomes in renowned professional journals. In 2008, Gal moved from Israel to Australia to chase her professional dream of working on microbial food biotechnology and her personal dream of living the Australian lifestyle. She received an international PhD scholarship from the University of Western Sydney and worked in collaboration with the Australian Wine Research Institute on wine fermentation, graduating her PhD in 2013. She then commenced a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Queensland, working on microbial biotechnology for the production of value-added chemicals.
Whilst completing her PhD at UNE, Dr Sinead Henderson worked as a Casual Lecturer before being hired as a Lecturer in Biomedical Science in the School of Science and Technology. Sinead is passionate about teaching and currently lectures and coordinates units in biochemistry, nutrition and biology. Sinead also conducts research on the immunological host-pathogen interactions during infections of significance to humans and animals. Her research uses a range of techniques in molecular and cellular biology to understand the pathological changes and immune response to infection, with a focus on host protection through vaccine study and development.