CTL are delighted to announce SPARK funding recipients for 2024-25
Dr Denis Casey, Critical Skills
Project: Developing Student Information Literacy Skills through a two-stage Multiple Choice Quiz
Dr Catherine Gander, Department of English
Project: Mapping Documentary Poetry: creating an open educational resource as assessment
Dr Elyse Ritchey, Department of French
Project: Peer tutoring in French and Francophone Studies
Dr Angelos Bollas, Department of Sociology
Project: Information and Digital Literacy Skills for Sociology Students
Dr Stephen O'Neill, Department of English
Project: Cli-Fi Sparks Peer Engagement
Prof Victor Lazzarini, Department of Music
Project: Enhancing Music Technology Teaching Through Performance Engagement
Angela Rickard, Department of Education
Project: Peer Reading: Valuing Teaching & Learning in Approaches to Academic Writing for PME Students
Dr Etain Quigley, Department of Law & Criminology
Project: Neurodiversity and Third Level Education; A Reusable Learning Resource
Dr Ian Marder, Department of Law & Criminology
Project: Researching restorative practices training for academic and professional staff
Dr Rodrigo Martinez, School of Modern Languages
Project: Integrating Skills in Spanish Language Modules
Dr Diarmaid Hyland, Department of Education
Project: Embedding Meaningful Lesson Planning in School Placement: Adapting Assessment Practices in Response to Student Feedback in Initial Teacher Education
Dr Trinidad Velasco Torrijos, Department of Chemistry
Project: Bring Back the Lab Book: scaffolding documentation and record keeping for increased student engagement in the Organic Chemistry undergraduate laboratory
Dr Threase Kessie, Department of Design Innovation
Project: Embedding Design Thinking led innovation skills in the large classroom environment using digital technology
Laura Thornton, Froebel Department of Primary and Early Childhood Education
Project: Tapestry: Unravelling Threads - Weaving New Stories
The following were awarded Spark Funding in 2022-23:
Dr David Murphy, Department of History
Project: Wargaming as a pedagogical tool - a case study using Operation Green
Dr Linda Short & Lisa Winter, School of Modern Languages
Project: Creating an enhanced online learning environment to better support student engagement and motivation in times of Covid
Dr Meishan Zhang, Department of Chinese Studies
Project: DIY Audiobooks
School of Modern Languages
Project: Testing scoring rubrics in evaluation processes: reliability, accountability and educational impact for learners and staff
Prof Ian Speller, Department of History
Project: Mentimeter to improve student engagement and interaction within a blended learning environment
Dr Patrick Bresnihan, Department of Geography
Project: Educating for Action: Climate Justice and Social Change
Dr Suzanne O'Keeffe, Froebel Dept of Primary & Early Childhood Education
Project: Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) enhancing students' confidence, competence and pedagogical skills
The final report for the 2022 Spark Initiative is below:
Spark Initiative Report 2022
The following were awarded Spark Funding in 2020-21
Dr Ana de Prada Perez, Department of Spanish & Latin American Studies
Project: Native Speaker Exchanges
Dr Jose Aldo Valencia Hernandez, Department of Design Innovation
Project: Playing and learning: involving the haptic, visual and auditory learning among students for entrepreneurial topics
Dr Clive Earls, Department of German Studies/School of Modern Languages
Project: Building Spaces - Re-designing a blended learning module to broaden access for institution-wide beginner learners of German as a foreign language
Dr Conor Meade, Department of Biology
Project: Using Padlet to develop an open dialogue space in online Ecology teaching
Dr David Lederer, Department of History
Project: 2021 Pandemic Conversations: A series of video-podcasts
Dr Eithne Dempsey, Department of Chemistry
Project: Use of GoPro recordings in chemistry laboratory - provision of pre-recorded first-person view material for facilitation of learning
Dr M. Javad Khajavi, Department of Media Studies
Project: Using Virtual Reality technologies as a prototyping tool in Digital Media modules to help students with low spatial abilities and to increase student's motivation
Dr John Cullen, School of Business
Project: Introducing Feedforward to Student Evaluations of Teaching & Learning
Dr Mary Leenane and Dr Eoin Grogan, Department of Irish Cultural Heritage
Project: Hands on with High Crosses
Dr Robert Elmes, Department of Chemistry
Project: ChemVR - the use of virtual reality for interactive teaching in chemistry lectures
Dr Tom Dowling, Department of Computer Science
Project: "Snake Cryptography", porting extra credit assignments to Python
Dr Aneta Stapien, Department of Critical Skills
Project: Fake news and disinformation: tools for engaged research and citizenship: A 3-part podcast
Dr Rafael de Andrade Moral, Department of Mathematics and Statistics
Project: Teachng Statistics Through Music
The final report for the 2021 Spark Initiative is below
Spark Initiative Report 2021
