Since the beginning of 2018, I have been teaching as a sessional academic, in the School of Arts and Education at the Australian Catholic University. What a privilege it has been to have worked for and with students who have chosen primary school education as their pathway. Over the years I have taught into six different units and wanted to share some of the highlights of my experiences.

Technologies Education, Assessment and Pedagogies, is my happy place. The first unit that I was asked to teach and I really worked to make it my own. For each tutorial (albeit hampered by that pesky pandemic!), I incorporated a hands-on element, wanting to expose my students to the tech they will encounter in the primary classroom, gain confidence and have fun. We would create picture book readings using green-screen, talking robots using Makey Makey, prototype solutions for an aging population using littlebits and consider a future with driverless cars using lego robotics. We tried various programming languages, apps and pedagogical techniques and I would always share anecdotes and stories from my time as a Technologies Teacher in Residence (F-6).

One of the elements of which I am most proud is creating something I called, ‘Inspiring Queensland Educators’. I sought, and collated inspiring messages from educators who have inspired me and shared these with the students in a linked weekly topic.

I have taught a couple of Science Units where I enjoyed building my own self-efficacy and came to realise how much fun science is. The highlight of my science classes would have to be our annual tutorial held at the Nudgee Waterhole. Inspired by the work of Dr Kimberley Wilson who’s research has centred around place-based, flexible, science education, we would take water samples, sketch habitat, collect leaf litter and even dress up like waterbugs with the wonderful Sue from Waterbug Wonders.

Other highlights included all the hands-on learning in the lab, making starburst rock cycles, testing wind speeds with anemometers, convection currents, sketching and classifying plants from Wamala, ACUs Indigenous garden.

I always tried to incorporate technologies into our classes and found this impactful and fulfilling when seeing students do the same in their assessment responses.

Something I felt very proud of was asking the ACU Library for the Our Land, Our Stories box sets of resources aimed at supporting teachers to embed perspectives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples into the curriculum. I used these in my science classes and the students loved them. I was really blown away to then learn that because of my request, ACU purchased a set for the libraries of every Australian campus.

Working with first years in a foundation unit called Digital Pedagogies was another interesting experience. I enjoyed supporting them as they settled into university more generally and then sharing my passion for education to hopefully inspire them and feel connected to the course. The showcase at the end of this unit, where student groups presented games created in Scratch, was always fun and it’s always great to see confidence levels grow. I always said to them, and I’ll say it now again, students don’t need us to be tech-geeks that teach, they need us to be teaching geeks-that can use tech.

littleBits are always popular with students - both young and young at heart!

As the Covid 19 pandemic impacted the delivery of tertiary education across the world, the courses I taught were also affected. I became involved in two units, delivered nationally, purely online. This is certainly a challenge for someone like me, who loves to make, do and play! The Masters of STEM Education included two units that I became involved in teaching, STEM in an integrated Maths curriculum, and STEM in Technologies and Engineering. The first (maths!), I co-taught with the incredible Emeritus Professor Romina Jamison-Proctor, and to say I had a masterclass in teaching as well as mathematics is an understatement!

Romina’s professionalism and experience has been a gift to me and I value our friendship and her belief in me as an educator and researcher.

In 2020 I was asked to deliver the online offering of STEM in Technologies and Engineering to practicing teachers across Australia. With little existing content I was, essentially starting from scratch, but again, worked hard to make it my own and integrate some genuinely enriching discussion, learning and assessment into the unit. Our weekly online tutorials quickly transformed into a place where we shared experiences, supported each other, talked through the challenges of integrating STEM and being ‘that’ teacher trying to change things in a school. This community of practice was a real highlight of this course.

I’ve also enjoyed being a tertiary supervisor and visiting ACU students on their placements. Seeing students in their element, working with the students, overcoming nerves and gaining confidence is particularly satisfying. Working at ACU has enabled me to develop my own personal pedagogy, to experiment, to learn, to grow as a teacher. The privilege of teaching future teachers is something I have not taken for granted. What an experience!

Kind Words about Leighann from ACU Students:

“Her clear approach made the unit much less stressful. She is a really great, creative, encouraging and inspiring teacher. Her passion motivated me so much. She also demonstrates how invested she is in our success and is proud of our work and shows us this.’’

Student SELT survey 2020

“I respected the depths of her connections to industry leaders and her ability to connect with their knowledge. I also appreciate some of the most comprehensive assignment feedback provided by any LIC for the assignments. It not only has pointed areas for improvement but also acknowledges strengths. I really gained a lot out of both the lectures and tutorials to further my ability to connect students and ICT in the future. Thank you for helping create a preferred future.’’

Student SELT survey 2018

“Learning under your tutelage has been such a pleasure all year. Your classes are fun, engaging, imaginative, and inspiring. Although I’m partial to almost all STEAM subjects, biology and earth sciences have never captured my interest as much as the others. But your enthusiasm for and delivery of the content inspired the same enthusiasm in me and that was reflected in the effort that was invested in my work.”
”I can say with honesty that in the years to come you will have had a lasting impact on not just my education, but in the way that I teach. The chance to have that impact on students is the reason I chose to change careers and you’ve modelled how to achieve that comprehensively. You’re a credit to your profession and should be congratulated.”

Feedback received via. email at end of Semester 2, 2020

The privilege of teaching future teachers

One of the elements of which I am most proud is creating something I called, ‘Inspiring Queensland Educators’. I sought, and collated inspiring messages from educators who have inspired me and shared these with the students in a linked weekly topic.

I always tried to incorporate technologies into our classes and found this impactful and fulfilling when seeing students do the same in their assessment responses.

Romina’s professionalism and experience has been a gift to me and I value our friendship and her belief in me as an educator and researcher.

Kind Words about Leighann from ACU Students:

“Her clear approach made the unit much less stressful. She is a really great, creative, encouraging and inspiring teacher. Her passion motivated me so much. She also demonstrates how invested she is in our success and is proud of our work and shows us this.’’