MBA alum recognised for innovative teaching

12 July 2015

Nick Barker (MBA Entrepreneurship, 2007) has been recognised by The University of Nottingham for his innovative teaching methods in the Postgraduate Teaching Awards 2015. Nick won the 'Highly Commended' Award alongside colleagues Olu Amodeni and Angela Martinez Dy who teach a large group in the Business School.

To increase student engagement and learning they ‘flipped the classroom’ using video and other digital technology. This included a video to introduce themselves and the course available prior to the first lecture, a digital discussion platform for students to interact with the lecturer and group, clickers and interactive worksheets in the sessions. Before each lecture students had pre-lecture preparation; the traditional one hour lecture was then replaced by a 20-30 minute lecturette and activity sessions. These flipped sessions resulted in students asking more questions and staying better engaged in the lectures. Feedback has been extremely positive.

The Postgraduate Teaching Award is an annual award to recognise and celebrate examples of innovative teaching and support of learning. Applicants may support teaching and learning through a wide range of activities, including: demonstrating in laboratory classes, distance learning, leading seminars or tutorials, supporting project work, lecturing or assessing and giving feedback on student work.

Nick Barker is a Teaching Assistant in the Business School where he specialises in Entrepreneurship and Innovation.