Join us online for this Neuroscience User-Group Meeting, focused on enhancing neuroscience education through practical lab experiences. Hear from five distinguished neuroscience experts who bring diverse perspectives on teaching and developing content in the field.
This online meeting is a unique opportunity to connect with fellow neuroscience educators, exchange insights, and explore strategies for teaching complex concepts through hands-on lab activities. Hear discussions on existing lab practicals, success stories, and potential improvements, while also exploring fresh ideas and techniques to expand neuroscience curricula.
Key Highlights
Introduction to existing 3rd year practicals for neuroscience teaching:
- Hear examples of how educators are successfully implementing neuroscience lab activities.
- Address frequent challenges faced in lab practicals and share effective solutions.
- Discuss improvements to optimize practicals and ensure they align with curriculum goals.
Content creation of new practicals for expanding the teaching curriculum:
- Identify key neuroscience concepts that can be effectively conveyed through hands-on lab experiences.
- Brainstorm ideas for 3rd-year lab practicals that engage students and support advanced neuroscience topics.
- Discuss common pitfalls and time sinks in Lt content creation.
Related Products:
Lt
Neuroscience Collection
Neuroscience Teaching Kit
Lt Sensors
Education PowerLabs
Additional Resources:
Highlight of the semester - why Crawfly is the perfect training opportunity for those teaching neuroscience
Talking Teaching: Key principles from Mind, Brain, and Education Science
Guest Speakers:
Assoc. Prof. Brian Billups
Eccles Institute of Neuroscience
Australian National University
Brian Billups is a cellular neuroscientist, with specific interests in synaptic function and the role of glial cells in modulating neurotransmission. He undertook his PhD at University College London under the supervision of Prof. David Attwell, investigating the role of glutamate transporters in glial cells. Following this, he was a Human Frontiers Long-Term Fellow at the University of Utah, studying calcium waves in astrocytes, before moving to Leicester, UK, to investigate modulation of neurotransmitter release mechanisms from presynaptic terminals. In 2005, he was awarded a Royal Society University Research Fellowship and was subsequently appointed University Lecturer in Pharmacology at the University of Cambridge. He moved to ANU in 2014, where he is now Associate Professor at the John Curtin School of Medical Research and Associate Director (Education). His current research investigates the role of plasma membrane transporters in recycling/replenishing neurotransmitters and their role in brain amino acid homeostasis.
Prof. Brett Graham
School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy
University of Newcastle
Brett Graham graduated with his PhD in 2006, and after a short postdoctoral period, he started his research laboratory, now the Spinal Cord Connections Group, in 2008. The primary theme of his research is spinal sensory coding, a topic he has been focused on since completing his Honors year studying inhibitory synaptic transmission between spinal dorsal horn neurons in 2001.
Prof. Alan Brichta
School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy
University of Newcastle
Alan Brichta is a neurobiologist with research interests in the anatomy and physiology of the peripheral and central vestibular systems. In particular, his studies have focused on vestibular hair cells and their associated primary afferents. Results from these studies are helping us understand the cellular mechanisms underlying normal and abnormal function associated with the peripheral vestibular apparatus.
Dr. Kate Thomson
Molecular & Biochemical Therapeutics
University of Canberra
Assoc. Prof. Regan Ashby
Molecular & Biochemical Therapeutics
University of Canberra