‘Being digital’ is one of the four domains of the UNSW Scientia Education Experience. The effective use of digital technology is vital to enhance the flexibility and effectiveness of teaching, now more than ever with the advent of the new UNSW trimester academic calendar. Digital technology, such as online lectures and tutorials, can enhance the flexibility of student learning by allowing them to view the material whenever it’s most convenient. Digital technology, such as UNSW Lecture Recordings+ (LR+), can also enhance the effectiveness of teaching by providing students a more supportive environment in which to engage with the teacher and other students. That is, students who may be too shy to ask questions when confused, or answer questions when asked, can now do so through a less confronting means. Universal Design for Learning acknowledges the different ways students learn and I believe the integration of digital technology into my teaching is important to address this.  

I have incorporated digital technology into my teaching in two keys ways:

1) Increased blended learning: For several of my courses (HESC1511, HESC3511, HESC3541), lectures and tutorials that were previously delivered face-to-face were converted to online formats. Initially, this was done in response to student feedback and to accomodate the different ways students learn. More recently, however, the increased use of blended learning was necessitated due to the changes in teaching brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

2) Incorporation of digital technology into lectures: I used LR+ technology during my lectures in HESC1511 in 2018. Notably, I was the first in the Department of Exercise Physiology to utilise this technology. LR+ enabled me to ask questions, start discussions, highlight important points and respond to points of confusion during lectures. The number of students who responded to questions and participated in discussion using the LR+ platform was far greater than the number of students who usually verbally participate in discussions, which suggests to me greater student engagement as a result of the integration of LR+ into my teaching.

"Matt effectively uses the Lecture Plus facility in Moodle to offer genuinely interactive lectures with students writing in response to targeted questions following on from previous content." (Peer review: Observation of teaching report. HESC1511, 2018)

"The online modules and the online quiz were good learning resources” (Individual teacher report. HESC3541, 2019)