An increasing push for tertiary staff from multiple institutions to share successful ideas and bolster each other is beginning to be felt in the South.
More than 200 educators from many parts of the country gathered in Dunedin on Wednesday and yesterday for a tertiary teaching and learning conference.
Most were University of Otago or Otago Polytechnic staff from various campuses, with others representing private training establishments.
The conference included lectures and workshops on topics such as supporting tertiary students through a challenging first year; teaching students with special needs or from diverse cultures; new ways of engaging students in learning; and teaching and learning methods for working environments such as businesses and factories.
The conference was sponsored by the Ako Aotearoa Academy of Tertiary Teaching Excellence, a government-funded body set up last year to foster staff development and improve teaching practices.
While collaboration among tertiary institutions was not new, the conference was the biggest example to date, Otago Polytechnic educational development team leader Terry Marler said.
