About PHELC 

What is pedagogy?

There are many definitions of the term, pedagogy.  Our point of reference in terms of this symposium is the definition below:

Simply put, pedagogy is about teaching and learning.  It incorporates the following elements: teaching, learning, curriculum and assessment.  It also concerns relationships and valuesPedagogy is fundamentally concerned with what people perceive to be meaningful, important and relevant as they engage in teaching-related activity and develop competence and expertise in a practice [emphases inserted].

Nind, M., Curtin, A., & Hall, K. (2016). Research methods for pedagogy. Bloomsbury: London.

What is a symposium?

The following are dictionary definitions of the word 'symposium':

Ref: https://www.dictionary.com/browse/symposium?s=t 

We like to think that our enactment of the PHELC symposium fulfills most of the criteria above, either during the symposium itself or afterwards ...

Symposium Objectives

Based on the accepted papers which critique authors’ current pedagogical practice in large class contexts, the objectives of this Special Interest Group are to … 

…  discuss and explore examples of innovative pedagogical and assessment practices which are effective in the large class context 

…  identify key principles for each of teaching, learning and assessment 

… identify and critique technologies which can support teaching and learning 

… publish the key findings emerging from the workshop 

Times listed are Central European Time (CET).  Please see www.timeanddate.com to convert to your local time.


PHELC Symposium, Dublin / Online, June 2024 - Programme

Times listed are Central European Time (CET).  Please see www.timeanddate.com to convert to your local time.

11.45-12.00 (CET) Log on / Registration 

12.00-12.15 (CET) Welcome: Introduction to Symposium and participants:  Dr. Anna Logan (@logananna11) and Ann Marie Farrell (@AnnMFarrell), Dublin City University 

12.15-13.00 (CET) Jaclyn Broadbent (@JaqiBFT), Deakin University, Melbourne

KEYNOTE:  Aligning the Summative and Formative Purposes of Assessment: Assignment Design, Feedback and Moderation at Scale


13.00-14.00 (CET)  Short Papers: Session 1

Talking the Talk: Interactive Oral Assessment to Promote Academic Integrity in Large Postgraduate Teacher Education Programmes

Student Engagement in a Large Flipped Class

Neurodiverse Students Learning in Large Lecture Theatres: Challenges and Opportunities


Q&A Session (Keynote and short paper presenters)


14.00-14.30 (CET)  Coffee break - Wheel of Fortune (prizes)


14.30-16.00 (CET)   Short Papers: Session 2

Ungrading: Using Feedback and Reflection to Address Assessment Challenges in  Large Classes

Relationship-Rich Education at Scale

Using an Individual Reflective Journal based on the Belbin Team Roles Framework to Manage Group Projects in Large Classes




Q&A Session  (Short paper presenters)


Wrap Up



Social Event & Wheel of Fortune (again!)

More spot prizes.  Chat.  Some sparkling drinks to celebrate the sixth PHELC symposium

PHELC Symposium, Dublin / Online, June 2023 - Programme

Times listed are Central European Time (CET).  Please see www.timeanddate.com to convert to your local time.

11.45-12.00 (CET) Log on / Registration 

12.00-12.30 (CET) Welcome: Introduction to Symposium and participants:  Dr. Anna Logan (@logananna11) and Ann Marie Farrell (@AnnMFarrell), Dublin City University 

12.30-14.00 (CET) Elaine Huber  (@enm181), University of Sydney

KEYNOTE:  Scaling New Horizons: Empowering Educators and Reimagining the Student Experience in Higher Education Large Classes


Lightning Talks: 

Designing Microcurricula-as-a-Service: The Case of Large Class, Cross programme, and Online Asynchronous Module.

Does Online Engagement Improve Students’ Performance in Large Classroom: An Empirical Evidence of Microeconomics module at University of Sheffield International College during the COVID19 pandemic

An Experience of Applying Active Learning to Large Classes


Short Papers:

Student Reflections on the Hackathon Experience

Enhancing student engagement by integrating principles of Universal Design for Learning in a Disability Studies in Education short course.

Q&A Session (keynote, lightning talk and short paper presenters).

14.00-14.30 (CET)  Coffee break - Wheel of Fortune (prizes)

14.30-16.00 (CET)   Lightning talks & Short Papers

Lightning Talks:

"Elicit and Engage" - Staff experiences of a student polling tool in large classes

The development of a Pharmacology module for undergraduate medical students at the University of Galway 

Optimising diverse linguistic capital through translanguaging in a humanities course.


Short papers:

ChatGPT: A means to enable student critical thinking in large classes

Group Video Assessment in Higher Education Large Classes: Students’ and Educators’ Perspectives

Managing group project-work in large classes with limited teaching supports; exploring self-directed mechanisms to assist students address group issues and the problem of the ‘free-rider’


Q&A Session  (lightning talk and short paper presenters)


Plenary discussion

Discussion, conclusions and suggestions for future PHELC events


Social Event & Wheel of Fortune (again!)

More spot prizes.  Chat.  Some sparkling drinks to celebrate the fifth PHELC symposium

PHELC Symposium, Dublin & Online, June 2022 - Programme

Times listed are Central European Time (CET).  Please see www.timeanddate.com to convert to your local time.

10.45-11.00 (CET) Log on / Registration 

11.00-11.30 (CET) Welcome: Introduction to workshop content and participants:  Dr. Anna Logan (@logananna11) and Ann Marie Farrell (@AnnMFarrell), Dublin City University 

11.30-13.00 (CET)

Keynote 1: Prof. Jacqui de Matos Ala, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 

Teaching with diversity in mind – designing curricula for culturally diverse large classes. 


Short papers:

Most Effective Tools and Strategies for Large Class Engagement: First Year Students and Their Recommendations

Q&A Session (keynote and short paper presenters)

13.00-14.00 (CET)  Coffee break - Wheel of Fortune (prizes)

14.00-15.30 (CET)   

Keynote 2: Prof. Frederic Fovet, Royal Roads University, Victoria, Canada (@Ffovet).

Including learner diversity in large class teaching: Using Universal Design for Learning to sustain a systematic proactive reflection on social justice and accessibility


Short Papers: 

The role of technology in formative assessment with large classes 

Developing a sense of community in a large class context


Q&A Session (keynote and short paper presenters)

15.30-16.30 (CET)   Workshop 

Themes TBA 

Discussion, conclusions and suggestions for future PHELC events


16.30.... (CET) 

Social Event & Wheel of Fortune (again!)

More spot prizes.  Chat.  Some sparkling drinks to celebrate the fourth PHELC symposium







PHELC Symposium, Dublin / Virtual, June 2021 - Programme

Times listed are Central European Time (CET).  Please see www.timeanddate.com to convert to your local time.

11.45-12.00 (CET) Log on / Registration 

12.00-12.15 (CET) Welcome: Introduction to workshop content and participants  Ann Marie Farrell & Anna Logan, Dublin City University 

12.15-13.30 (CET)  

13.30-14.00 (CET)  Coffee Break & Wheel of Fortune (prizes)

14.00-14.15 (CET)  Lightning Talks:  

14.15-15.00 (CET)  

15.00-15.45 (CET)  

15.45 …. (Central European Time)   Social Event   More spot prizes.  Chat.  Some sparkling drinks to celebrate the second PHELC symposium.

PHELC Symposium, Valencia / Virtual, June 2020 - Programme

Times listed are Central European Time (CET) i.e. time in Valencia.  Please see www.timeanddate.com to convert to your local time.

11.45-12.00 (CET) Log on / Registration 

12.00-12.15 (CET) Welcome: Introduction to workshop content and participants  Ann Marie Farrell & Anna Logan, Dublin City University 

12.15-12.45 (CET)  Keynote 1: Prof. David Carless, University of Hong Kong Assessment and Feedback for Large Classes 

12.45-13.30 (CET)  Paper Presentations (10 minutes per paper - Q&A for all presenters (last 15 minutes) 

Dr. Claire Griffin, Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, Ireland.

Student Engagement and Assessment: Promoting Student Learning across All Levels of Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy

Danny Carroll, University of New South Wales, Australia.

Assessment for learning at scale at UNSW Sydney.

Dr. Justin Rami & Dr. Francesca Lorenzi, Dublin City University, Ireland.

Pedagogical dialogue and feedforward with large classes in a teacher education programme in Ireland 

13.30-14.00 (CET)  Coffee Break & Wheel of Fortune (prizes)

14.00-14.30 (CET)  Keynote 2: Prof. David J Hornsby, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada.  Moving Large Classes Online: Implications for Assessment, Teaching and Learning 

14.30-15.30 (CET)  World Cafe roundtable discussion (rotating breakout rooms): Pivoting Large Class Pedagogy Online (Assessment, Teaching, Learning) 

15.30-15.45 (CET)  Plenary discussion: Discussion, conclusions and suggestions for future PHELC events 

15.45 …. (Central European Time)   Social Event   More spot prizes.  Chat.  Some sparkling drinks to celebrate the second PHELC symposium.

PHELC Symposium, Valencia, June 2019 - Programme

13.30-14.00 Registration 

14.00-14.15 Welcome: Introduction to workshop content and participants Ann Marie Farrell Dublin City University 

14.15-14.45 Long presentation: Team-based learning in a large class David O Hanlon, Stephanie Duffy, Luke Fannon, Nuala Harding, Seadna Ryan, Athlone Institute of Technology, Ireland

14.45-15.00 Research in pedagogy for large classes in HE: Knowledge gaps and opportunities Anna Logan, Dublin City University

15.00-15.20 Short Presentation: Enhancing the student experience: Facebook as a support tool for students in an enabling education Bianca Price, University of South Australia

15.20-15.40 Lightning Talks based on Posters

Enabling active learning through the use of Plicker - Charalampos Chanialidis, University of Glasgow 

Simulations for Assessment in Large Classes - Iain McMenamin, Dublin City University 

A low mobile data usage gamification scavenger hunt prototype for engineering students at an African university of technology Nicolaas Johannes Luwes, Leanri Van Heerden, Central University of Technology, Free State, South Africa

Motivating students through gamification in nursing education: A qualitative research Juul Lemey, Evelien Hast, Artvelde University College, Ghent 

Pedagogical assessment and possibilities of developing World Café Method and Inter-generational Learning into Higher Education Learning - Trudy Corrigan, Dublin City University

Building UDL into summative assessment in a large class: Challenges and Possibilities Ann Marie Farrell, Dublin City University 

15.40-16.15 Coffee & Questions and Poster Presentations 

16.15-16.30 Short Presentation: Promoting Student Engagement with a Large Class (400+): Implications for large sized lectures, small group workshops and online teaching and learning Fiona Giblin, Dublin City University 

16.30-17.20 World Cafe roundtable discussion: Teaching, Learning and Assessment in Large Classes

17.20-18.00 Plenary discussion: Conclusions and action planning for practice and research building on the first PHELC symposium