SOSS research festival panel discussion
Wednesday 5th October 9-10am UK, 12-1pm Dubai, 4-5pm Malaysia
Developing future-ready graduates: What role can academic staff play?
Higher education is starting to embrace its role in promoting student wellbeing and life skills, especially given the concerning levels of poor mental health and uncertainties in the future job market. This panel discussion considers different perspectives on the role of academic staff in this new era, and highlights diverse opportunities for collaboration.
Panel chair: Prof Deborah Hall, Professor of Positive Psychology, Dept of Psychology, Heriot-Watt University Malaysia.
Deborah’s research spans a range of topics that touch on aspects of individual and societal well-being. She is recognised as a world leading expert on tinnitus, but other examples of her research include the positive education practices. Deborah places great value on interdisciplinary collegiate team working.
https://researchportal.hw.ac.uk/en/persons/deborah-hall
Panel:
Dr Amira Firdaus, Associate Professor, Department of Media & Communication Studies & Deputy Director (Professional Development), Academic Enhancement & Leadership Development Centre (ADeC), Universiti Malaya
Amira’s core expertise is Positive/Constructive Communication with practical and conceptual applications across three fields: Communication, Higher Education, and Positive Psychology. Amira is collaborating with the Malaysia team at Heriot-Watt University specifically to explore applications of positive psychology in the higher education sector across Asia.
https://umexpert.um.edu.my/amira_firdaus
Dr Kerstin Maier Barcroft, Assistant Professorof Organisational Behaviour, Edinburgh Business School, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh.
Kerstin’s core expertise is the political economy of policing, diversity management, and selection and recruitment. In the last academic year, Kerstin was joint global coordinator for the new Professional Skills course in Edinburgh Business School, and collaborated on a research project to evaluate its impact on the student experience.
https://www.hw.ac.uk/ebs/people/faculty/kerstin-maier-barcroft.htm
Dr Ron Salden, Assistant Professor, Dept of Psychology, Heriot-Watt University Malaysia.
Ron’s successfully combines his passion for scuba diving with youth development by offering extra-curricular activities to students. He also applies his expertise in Cognitive Psychology and Educational Psychology to continually strive for improving pedagogy.
https://www.hw.ac.uk/uk/profiles/teaching/soss/ron-johannes-carolas-maria-salden.htm
Sharmila Fatimah, PhD student, Dept of Psychology, Heriot-Watt University Malaysia.
Sharmila is a James-Watt Scholar just completing the first year of her PhD studies. Her project focuses on the contribution of dispositions for critical thinking in higher education, and she will be developing a set of interventions for improving pedagogical practices in this regard.