Dr Dylan P Williams

Dr Dylan Williams has worked in teaching focused roles since completing his PhD in 2007. He specialised in the development of student-centred learning experiences, mostly based on Context and Problem Based Learning (C/PBL) and since 2007 has overseen the development and integration of C/PBL activities throughout the programme. He has also developed a problem-solving strategy to help support students working on these problems. His educational research focuses on the impact of the approaches he uses. He is currently researching the impact of C/PBL on student attitudes towards transferable skills development and comparing these attitudes with those of students taught using other approaches. Impact of work Dylan's work has had a positive impact on the learning experience of students. As well as improving student performance, the C/PBL activities that Dylan developed improved the confidence of students when speaking in public, working in teams and solving complex problems. His work has also facilitated in the adoption of active-learning approaches by colleagues at Leicester and beyond. His resources have been published as Open Educational Resources by the Royal Society of Chemistry and some have been adopted by other institutions. The C/PBL approach that has been developed is also used outside of the UK. He is a regular speaker at major chemistry education conferences and has published his findings in peer-reviewed articles and recently wrote a book chapter. He has also made significant contributions to major initiatives at the University of Leicester such as the review of the personal tutor system and the introduction of lecture capture. His contributions have been integrated into departmental policies on both of these matters. Plans for the future Dylan plans to use his experience of active learning approaches to work alongside others on researching the effectiveness of a number of different strategies. It is essential that an evidence base of the effectiveness of various active teaching approaches is developed so that institutions reviewing their teaching and learning can make informed choices.