Inside Large Group Interactive Teaching in Practice

The new session, Large Group Interactive Teaching in Practice, explores the basics of interactive teaching in lecture hall settings. It offers a low-stakes environment where participants can practise, experiment with equipment, ask questions, and receive peer feedback. Despite taking place on the hottest day of the year, five dedicated participants attended the in-person session in Peston Lecture Theatre.

The session was highly interactive, featuring activities such as think–pair–share and one-minute papers, alongside video content. It was great to see TELT-supported tools such as Mentimeter and Padlet in use, alongside traditional pen-and-paper activities, which added a valuable tangible element.

I found the session content both interesting and useful in my role as a learning technologist. It explored why traditional lectures remain popular, as well as the challenges and benefits of large-group teaching. Practical tips were shared on how to make teaching in larger spaces more interactive, engaging, and impactful.

One key takeaway was that challenges in teaching and training are shared experiences. Rather than focusing on perceived shortcomings, the session emphasised continuous improvement and development.

I also delivered a short introduction to teaching space awareness, bringing participants to the front of the room to demonstrate key features such as microphones and control panels. We will be running full length Teaching Space Awareness sessions in September with more dates to be added. 

Attendees were engaged throughout, with opportunities to present using their own slides and receive feedback from peers and facilitators. It was clear that everyone involved is passionate about enhancing the student experience.

I thoroughly enjoyed collaborating with Valentina and Giorgia, and I look forward to working with them and the wider QMA team again in the future.