August 15, 2023, by Laura Nicholson

Five minutes with…Laura Nicholson

We asked Laura Nicholson: What is your job role?

Learning Technology Officer in the Faculty and School Support team, working with the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences.

What 3 words describe you?

Friendly, Organised, Creative.

Tell us something ‘unusual’ about yourself

I love a good challenge! My current interest is walking challenges.  I’ve walked 100 miles from the West Coast to the East Coast of England, along Hadrian’s Wall which was great fun and I always spend some time every summer backpacking along different parts of the Southwest coastal path. I’ve also completed events run by the Ultra Challenge club, the most recent being a ’50 km in one day’ walk to raise money for charity. I’m upping my game slightly next year as the plan is to run my first half marathon.

What excites you about learning technology?

Its ability to break down barriers. For starters, online education has been transformative in breaking down geographical, physical, personal and potentially financial barriers for people who previously had limited access to learning opportunities. Then there is virtual reality, which simulates real-world scenarios and environments, enabling authentic confidence-building experiences for those who haven’t been lucky enough to have such an opportunity before. Or, more recently, there’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) which has taken the educational landscape by storm. The full impact of AI is still unfolding but its potential to support, for example, neurodivergent students is really encouraging. AI educational assistants can offer personalised support with organisation or planning tasks, and provide real-time feedback and guidance all in a non-judgemental way, thereby breaking down barriers which may have previously hindered their studies.

Do you have any top tips for our users?

Ask for help, guidance, ideas, support, and training on anything tech-related from the learning technology team. We have a diverse range of skills within the team and are always happy to support you with anything you may be currently using or thinking of trying out technology-wise.

What do you think will be the most important thing in learning technology at the University of Nottingham this next year?

The progress we plan to make with accessibility practices. The recent Accessibility conference was a huge success in promoting the numerous ways in which we can all adopt more accessible practices and subsequently move forwards to create an even more inclusive learning environment.

What have you learned recently?

I am always trying to develop my skills in animation. I love how animation can support learning by breaking down complex ideas and concepts and present them a more visually engaging way. I’ll often dabble with Adobe After Effects, and lately, I’ve also been practising developing my own hand-drawn animations using a Wacom tablet.

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