Biography
I am Professor of Physics Education and Head of the UK Open University’s School of Physical Sciences, having previously been Head of Physics.
My primary interests lie in developing the skills, especially the mathematical skills, which physics and other science students require for their study, and in the links between assessment and learning. Until recently I was the Science Faculty’s Deputy Associate Dean with responsibility for Assessment.
I was fortunate to have teaching fellowships with the two of the Open University’s Centres for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETLs). I was academic advisor on e-assessment to the Virtual Learning Environment Team and continue to work, in partnership with eSTEeM and the OpenScience Laboratory, on various projects with are evaluating the impact of our assessment practice on our students. I am on the executive committee of Assessment in Higher Education which runs biennial international conferences, occasional workshops at other times and webinars in partnership with Transforming Assessment.
I have a BSc in Physics and a PhD by published work with the title E-assessment for learning? Exploring the potential of computer-marked assessment and computer-generated feedback, from short-answer questions to assessment analytics. I am a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.