Bristol University ChemLabS celebrated by Jisc Times Higher Education Award
18 universities across the UK are celebrating their achievements after they received this year’s Times Higher Education Awards in London.
The awards ceremony, hosted by THE’s editor Ann Mroz and Michael Portillo, with an opening address by David Willets, was attended by more than 1,000 people from universities and colleges across the UK.
The Jisc sponsored Outstanding ICT Initiative Award went to Bristol University for their innovative Dynamic Laboratory Manual (DLM) developed by Bristol ChemLabS staff and Learning Science Ltd. ChemLabS is the UK’s Centre for Excellence in Teaching and Learning in practical chemistry and has transformed the way that undergraduate practical work is carried out, in part through the creation of this sophisticated e-learning tool.
Initially the DLM was envisaged to be an online, web-based laboratory manual containing all the information the students would require to carry out a particular practical investigation. But it quickly developed into a much more comprehensive student resource containing a complete video library of practical techniques, fully interactive simulations and virtual instruments, online pre-lab assessment and safety tests (both providing immediate feedback), online tutorial support, and a comprehensive marks database designed to track student progress. See an overview
Sarah Porter, Jisc’s head of innovation and one of the judges for the awards said, “By focusing on innovative approaches to using technology to improve learning, the project has had measurable, demonstrable impact on the attainment of students of chemistry at the University of Bristol. However, what made the project a winner is that a lot of careful thought and effort has been put into extending the impact of ChemLabS so that it benefits school pupils, students, teachers and lecturers across the whole UK. ChemLabS is an excellent example of what can happen when innovative technology is used to dissolve the barrier between a university and the world around it, and it is particularly welcome that this has been achieved in a challenging and crucial discipline area.” The project has had great impact on chemistry teaching and learning at Post 16 and a commercial version will soon be available in every (4000+) secondary school in the UK.
Building on the success of this software, Bristol’s Departments of Biochemistry, Physiology and Pharmacology have now introduced DLM-style software to support students in their teaching laboratories. The project has also had great impact on chemistry teaching and learning at Post 16 and a commercial version of the e-learning tool called LabSkills will soon be available in every (4000+) secondary school in the UK.
ChemLabS’ Nick Norman who received the Award in London said, “The ChemLabS DLM has transformed the laboratory experience for chemistry undergraduates at Bristol and we are delighted with the recognition that this Award brings. We are all very proud of what we have achieved over the last few years and particularly pleased with how a project developed to support chemistry students is now having an impact in other disciplines and also in schools.”
The judges for the award were Professor David Baker, deputy chair of Jisc and former principal of University College Plymouth St Mark & St John; Sean Mackney, deputy chief executive, The Higher Education Academy; and Sarah Porter, head of innovation at Jisc.
Find out more about the Times Higher Education Awards and the evening’s winners.