QMA Festival of Education 2026 – Day One

TELT at the QMA Festival of Education Day One, focused on student engagement, with education‑related icons such as books

It was a pleasure to attend Day One of the Queen Mary Academy (QMA) Festival of Education 2026 on Thursday 12 March. The day focused on student engagement – a theme that continues to be central across the sector – and offered a chance to explore important issues, hear fresh perspectives and connect with colleagues from across the university.

There was a warm and welcoming atmosphere from the outset as we arrived in the Graduate Centre to collect our event passes. The in‑person format brought together academics, professional services staff, Library colleagues, School Learning Technologists and many others. It was lovely to meet people in person for the first time or reconnect after a long time of mostly online communication.

Opening Session

Professor Alastair Robertson, Interim Director of the Queen Mary Academy, opened the event by outlining the agenda and highlighting current opportunities for staff, including the President and Principal’s Fund for Educational Excellence, which supports innovative educational projects. He also reminded attendees that Day Two of the Festival will take place on 9 June 2026, with opportunities to submit expressions of interest for the associated Poster Exhibition.

Keynote: Student Engagement

The keynote was delivered by Tom Lowe, Assistant Head of School (Student Experience) at the University of Westminster and Chair of the RAISE Network. His engaging talk, “Student Engagement: Shared partnership in a complex and changing landscape,” explored:

• Student engagement as a shared partnership between staff and students.
• The changing expectations of learners shaped by digital technologies, smartphones and AI.
• Pressures affecting students today, including financial responsibilities and graduate employment competition.
• The importance of curiosity, relationship-building and designing learning that encourages active participation.
• The need to rethink teaching approaches to match modern learning behaviours.

Tom also modelled interactive teaching through short “pair and share” activities.

The Great Queen Mary Debate

After a short break, the event moved into a lively panel discussion: “Student Engagement – A Shared Responsibility?”, chaired by Tom Lowe. Panellists included:

• Professor Deborah Rafalin
• Dr Mahesha Samaratunga
• Chris Shelley
• Student representative Maria Rubbani

Each offered thoughtful perspectives on issues such as widening participation, financial pressures, cultural differences in education, changing student expectations and the evolving role of universities. The session closed with audience questions and further reflections from the panel.

Afternoon: The World Café

After lunch in the Octagon, the afternoon session focused on staff development opportunities through QMA. Using a world café format, attendees were able to visit tables dedicated to different programmes and speak directly with QMA staff, academics and students involved.

I visited three tables:

• The President and Principal’s Fund for Educational Excellence, where previous recipients Paula Funnell and Dr Cassandra Lewis shared their experience of creating the AI for Student Learning and Research project.

• The Learner Interns Programme, which partners staff with students on scholarship projects. It was inspiring to hear from Dr Swati Nehete currently working on a fascinating project. We also met a current student and former intern who enjoyed participating in the programme.

• Bespoke workshops, where QMA staff explained their flexible approach to designing tailored sessions for teams across Queen Mary. It was nice to meet Dr Klaas Sijbrandij again, he has attend two TELT workshops I co-delivered.

Other tables covered professional qualifications, recognition routes such as PGCAP and CILT, and student development opportunities including the SEED Award.

Karen Hudson closed the afternoon with thanks and a reminder of Day Two in June.

Final thoughts

I had a fantastic time attending Day One of the Festival. It was an engaging and inspiring event with plenty of stimulating conversations and new ideas. I also discussed potential collaborations and have already connected several attendees with colleagues in TELT.

A big thank you to the organisers – Karen Hudson, Elise Gasser and Catherine Hunt – and to the whole QMA team whose hard work made the event a real success.

I’m already looking forward to Day Two in June.