We are delighted to announce that two St Anne’s academics have been part of a which have been awarded Vice Chancellor’s Education Awards for 2020. The winning project, SmashMedicine and SmashInitiative, was led by Biochemistry Lecturer Dr Ben Harris, with Professor David Harris also a part of the project team.
SmashMedicine is an evidence-based educational technology platform that allows students, doctors and faculties to collaborate and produce high-quality content in the form of multiple choice questions. Combining multiple learning modalities with artificial intelligency and gamification, the team enhances the student experience by making learning fun. The project aims to improve student wellbeing by giving positive online feedback and integrating humour to reduce stress and anxiety.
By using CrowdSourced learning, students can learn from each other as well as the faculty. This collaborative, student-centric approach promotes deep learning and broadens student differential diagnostic libraries. The generated content can be used to provide students with high-quality formative material, a problem regularly encountered by faculties. SmashMedicine also provides doctors with a useful tool to continue their professional development.
The SmashConcept not only applies to medicine but can enhance the student experience across a number of different subjects in Oxford and beyond.
The judge commented: “The team are to be congratulated for this ambitious, international project, which has immense potential for extension across other knowledge-intensive subjects, such as engineering. The collaboration between colleagues at Oxford and internationally, for example with the Medical School in Barcelona, is a particular strength. The panel hopes that in time the team might consider preparing a submission for national awards, such at Advance HE’s Collaborative Awards for Teaching Excellence (CATE).”
Congratulations!