To address the 2019 theme "creativity' for UQ Teaching and Learning Week we highlighted innovative teachers who enhance student learning in UQ's Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences.

Associate Professor Staatz teaches within UQ's School of Pharmacy

Q&A with Associate Professor Christine Staatz

1. What kind of innovative teaching and learning practices do you incorporate?

This year I integrated the learning platform RiPPLE (Recommendation in Personalized Peer-Learning Environments) into an undergraduate Pharmacy course that I co-ordinate and students really LOVED IT. RiPPLE allows students to write their own learning resources (which, for example, could be multiple choice questions, worked examples, videos or summary notes) and share these with fellow students. RiPPLE also uses a leader board and a variety of badges to enable students to get recognition for their learning contributions. My student cohort wrote over 650 resources in total. Indeed students only needed to write four resources across the semester but I had some writing more than twenty. I believe RiPPLE increased student satisfaction with my course and it easily integrated into Blackboard. It is a UQ-developed program and can be freely accessed.

2. How do you hope to influence the student experience at UQ?

I hope to make my students enthusiastic and inquisitive learners who are not afraid of new challenges.

3. What do you enjoy about teaching students?

I relish being in a tutorial class where ideas are bouncing around the room and that ‘aha’ moment when I know that I have helped a student grasp a new concept. I also like the idea that I am in a small way helping to train the health care workforce of tomorrow and that students could apply something that I have taught them to help others.

4. What are your career highlights so far?

Graduation day each year is always a very proud moment.