Presentations and Recordings
RZSS Zoo Studies
RZSS Zoo Studies: converting onsite learning to online learning
The first half of this presentation will introduce RZSS’s new online course: Zoo Studies. Launched during lockdown, this online course replaced onsite alternatives to engage with 113 learners remotely. This PowerPoint will introduce both the course content and its evaluation, with particular focus on impact of learner nature connectedness.
The second part will be presented in Mentimeter, allowing delegates to engage live via smartphone. To better understand RZSS’s evaluation methods, the audience will actively participate by calculating and sharing their own personal nature connectedness scores. With Mentimeter, we will demonstrate the diverse, gamified and interactive pedagogy underpinning all of the e-learning materials included within Zoo Studies.
Meet the Presenter
Blair Cockburn - Education Officer, RZSS
Jasper Hughes - Education Officer, RZSS
Blair Cockburn has been a Discovery and Learning Officer with the Royal Zoological Society of Scotland based at Edinburgh Zoo since 2014, acting as the specialist for secondary education throughout this time. Having studied Biological Sciences with Honours in Zoology, he graduated Edinburgh University in 2011. Blair achieved his Professional Graduate Diploma in Education from Strathclyde University in 2013. Following time teaching Science and Biology in Scottish secondary schools, Blair focusses on educational provision for 11-18 year olds and acts as an internal verifier for RZSS’s work with the SQA.
Following the first lock-down, he was part of the team, alongside Lizzie Seymour (RZSS’s Learning Technologist) and Jasper Hughes (RZSS’s Education Officer at the Highland Wildlife Park), tasked with developing and delivering an online alternative to RZSS’s established onsite courses aimed at 16-18 year olds (RZSS Science Summer School and the award-winning ZEBRA programme). This collaboration resulted in the RZSS Zoo Studies course.
Supporting Resources