Dr Marie Bassford

Job: Associate Professor in Physics

Faculty: Computing, Engineering and Media

School/department: School of Engineering and Sustainable Development

Address: De Montfort University, The Gateway, Leicester, LE1 9BH

T: +44 (0)116 2577055

E: mbassford@dmu.ac.uk

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Publications and outputs

Engineering Equity; the value of engaging authentic and inclusive cogs in the learning and teaching machine.
dc.title: Engineering Equity; the value of engaging authentic and inclusive cogs in the learning and teaching machine. dc.contributor.author: Bassford, Marie; Strzelecka, A. dc.description.abstract: This paper investigates the imperative of equity in the delivery of engineering education, as experienced at De Montfort University in Leicester. Recognizing the multifaceted challenges facing academics and institutions, our study delves into the transformative impact of engaging authentic and inclusive practices as essential components in the higher education machine. As we evolved post-covid, the University embraced a new ‘block delivery’ method of teaching and learning that involves the delivery of modules consecutively, usually over more intensive but shorter timeframes. Allowing students to be immersed in one topic at a time is viewed as a student-centred approach that reaps many benefits specifically for students from groups traditionally under-represented at University. Through an in-depth examination of our School’s past and current engineering education models, institutional policies, and classroom dynamics, we unveil our perspective of the intrinsic value of diversity and inclusivity. Lessons learned related to student contact time and pace of delivery of core underpinning material that is best absorbed more gradually will be shared, highlighting strategies for programmes in other disciplines that may face similar challenges. This paper underscores the necessity of fostering a learning environment where every student, regardless of background, feels a sense of belonging and is empowered to thrive.
Current and emerging trends within Higher Education that enhance diversity and inclusivity in undergraduate STEM provision.
dc.title: Current and emerging trends within Higher Education that enhance diversity and inclusivity in undergraduate STEM provision. dc.contributor.author: Bassford, Marie dc.description.abstract: Diversity and inclusivity are becoming increasingly important issues within STEM higher education as universities strive to create a more welcoming and supportive learning environment for students from all backgrounds that retain students from underrepresented groups. A range of trending initiatives, presented within this chapter, including the following; The development of outreach programmes specifically targeting underrepresented groups, scholarships and bursaries for students from disadvantaged backgrounds, and mentoring and support programmes for minority students. Targeted recruitment efforts to attract students from underrepresented groups, including recruitment fairs and events in regions with high levels of diversity, liaising with local schools and colleges to encourage students to consider STEM courses, and providing information and support to students and parents about the benefits of studying STEM. The diversification of STEM courses that focus on the social and cultural aspects of STEM, are more interdisciplinary and include elements of other disciplines, such as the arts and humanities. The creation of supportive learning environments, by providing additional support and resources, such as mentoring, tutoring and counselling services, as well as creating physical and virtual spaces for students to meet and network with each other. Increased representation in STEM faculty and staff within Higher Education. This includes efforts to recruit more women and minority faculty members, as well as providing support and training to existing faculty members to help them better understand and support the needs of students from diverse backgrounds. This chapter explores opportunities to create a more diverse and inclusive STEM Higher Education community, which will not only benefit the students but also help address the wider societal challenges faced by STEM fields.
Neurodiverse students and problem finding; creating opportunities to incorporate special interests and harness the power of hyperfocus
dc.title: Neurodiverse students and problem finding; creating opportunities to incorporate special interests and harness the power of hyperfocus dc.contributor.author: Bassford, Marie; Lilliott, E. dc.description.abstract: Engineering laboratories provide ample opportunity for students to find solutions to problems; analogous to putting out fires, rather than preventing them. At University, we explore the more challenging skill of problem finding. This requires students to think proactively and requires curiosity, flexibility, reflectivity, perceptivity and the ability to withhold judgement. Interestingly, our neurodiverse engineering students are able to hyperfocus on activities that spark interest and can, given the right circumstances, demonstrate talent for problem finding. We present an engineering toolkit that incorporates practical, tangible strategies that create the necessary physical, sensory and emotional spaces to harness the power of hyperfocus.
Sensory sensitivities and the student learning experience in Higher Education
dc.title: Sensory sensitivities and the student learning experience in Higher Education dc.contributor.author: Bassford, Marie
On your e-bike: Riding towards the light
dc.title: On your e-bike: Riding towards the light dc.contributor.author: Bassford, Marie dc.description: open access journal
PuzzlEd: RAISE
dc.title: PuzzlEd: RAISE dc.contributor.author: O'Sullivan, Angela; Nichols-Drew, L.; Bacon, Joanne; Bassford, Marie; Crisp, Annette; Fowler, Mark R. dc.description.abstract: In this interactive workshop, the HE Advance CATE (Spotlight) Award winning CrashEd team from De Montfort University will showcase our current innovative venture, PuzzlEd. Whereas CrashEd was the culmination of interdisciplinary subject specialisms including Criminology, Forensic Science, Physics, Maths and Policing, PuzzlEd has evolved from our differentiated personal learning styles. Between the team members, our varied strengths are represented including words (anagrams and homophones), associations (shapes, numbers, colours), language and images. By working together as partners, we have evolved our original collaborations which has culminated in an immersive and engaging pedagogic tool, that accommodates a range of learning styles and in doing so promotes teamwork and peer feedback. The purpose of PuzzlEd is to utilise the popular genre of escape rooms, whereby participants face tasks against the clock. We have created our challenges influenced from our own learning styles, resulting in an array of logic puzzles which when solved generate padlock codes leading to further clues. Underpinning PuzzlEd are numerous theoretical approaches such as Constructivist, Humanist and Connectivist, enabling scaffolding of learning and transformative opportunities. Utilising technology via computerised avatars as narrators further enhances the PuzzlEd experience for participants. This is a novel approach to teaching, learning and assessment, which will inspire and empower the higher education community. dc.description: Workshop at 2019 RAISE Pedagogic Conference in Newcastle
PuzzlEd: Playful Learning
dc.title: PuzzlEd: Playful Learning dc.contributor.author: Nichols-Drew, L.; O'Sullivan, Angela; Bassford, Marie; Crisp, Annette; Bacon, Joanne; Fowler, Mark dc.description.abstract: This interactive Playful Activity Session presents our current novel endeavour, PuzzlEd, being developed by the successful Advance HE CATE (Spotlight) 2018 award winning team CrashEd (Angela O’Sullivan [NTF], Marie Bassford, Annette Crisp, Joanne Bacon, Mark Fowler, Marisol Martinez-Lees and Leisa Nichols-Drew). This innovative project, replicates the inter-disciplinary and constructivist team ethos of CrashEd, whereby our scholarship and knowledge, stemming from good practice, provides the pedagogic foundation of PuzzlEd as a learning, teaching and assessment tool. PuzzlEd provides a unique opportunity for participants, utilising the experiential and engaging principles of escape room activities, to learn new concepts, whilst developing teamwork skills. An array of innovative and creative teaching and learning approaches will be demonstrated to nurture problem solving skills and encourage lateral thinking. Additionally, the involvement of computerised avatars throughout the activity, highlights the theory of connectivism in our technology facilitated practice. Participants will find the challenge of the ‘hands-on’ puzzles immersive, building bridges across inter-disciplinary subjects and scaffolds of knowledge through the experiential learning of solving progressively complex and interlinked puzzles. Cohesively working together, groups of participants will also have the opportunity to work to their individual strengths and learning preferences, solving abstract puzzles, anagrams and a range of other practical logic problems to literally unlock the padlocks. In doing so, they will not only reveal formative assessment answers, but the key to successfully engaging students in fun, interdisciplinary tasks to embed learning. As in any escape room scenario, the task is against the clock. Therefore, participants are briefly introduced to the task to maximise actual participation time, with a subsequent 15 minute plenary discussion, to identify essential factors that make this imaginative approach transferable and engaging.
PuzzlEd
dc.title: PuzzlEd dc.contributor.author: Nichols-Drew, L.; O'Sullivan, Angela; Crisp, Annette; Bacon, Joanne; Bassford, Marie; Fowler, Mark R. dc.description.abstract: This interactive workshop showcases the next creative and innovative project, PuzzlEd, being developed by members of the successful Advance HE CATE (Spotlight) 2018 award winners, CrashEd, (Marie Bassford, Joanne Bacon, Annette Crisp, Leisa Nichols-Drew, Mark Fowler, Marisol Martinez-Lees and Angela O’Sullivan [NTF] ). The project emulates the successful constructivist and inter-disciplinary approach employed in CrashEd, ensuring that the knowledge and scholarship developed by the team’s good practice underpins the pedagogy of PuzzlEd as a teaching, learning and assessment tool. Delegates will have the opportunity to experience PuzzlEd which uses the principles of escape rooms to engage learners to develop teamwork skills whilst learning new concepts. A range of creative and innovative teaching and learning tools will be employed to encourage abstract thinking and nurture problem solving skills. Participants will be immersed in the challenge, building scaffolds of knowledge and bridges across inter-disciplinary subjects with a range of 'hands on' puzzles. Teams of participants will have the opportunity to work to their strengths, solving anagrams, abstract puzzles and a range of other practical logic problems to literally unlock the padlock to reveal not only the answer to the formative assessment but the answer to engaging students in fun, interdisciplinary tasks to embed learning. Like any good escape room scenario the task is against the clock and so participants will have a brief introduction to the task and a 15 minute plenary discussion afterwards to identify the key factors that make this creative approach engaging and transferable. dc.description: Faculties of HLS, CEM and interdisciplinary research.
SPaCE- Sensory Processing and Classroom Environments: Methodology for evaluating and improving teaching spaces for better student experience
dc.title: SPaCE- Sensory Processing and Classroom Environments: Methodology for evaluating and improving teaching spaces for better student experience dc.contributor.author: Bassford, Marie; Painter, B. dc.description.abstract: SPaCE combines building assessment and pedagogic research to establish improved ‘inclusive learning spaces’ to improve the health and wellbeing of all students, including those with a Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD). A person with SPD finds it difficult to process and act upon information received through the senses. This creates challenges in performing countless everyday tasks and impacts upon many aspects of life including motor clumsiness, behavioural problems, anxiety, depression and school/college/university performance. Preliminary research has shown that this can affect the quality of the student experience and thereby their progression and retention. Whilst it is accepted that students with physical disabilities have specific environmental requirements and, where possible, reasonable adjustments are made, specific requirements for students with SPD are not normally considered at University. Practitioner experience in other educational contexts suggests that the physical layout of a classroom may be adapted to maximise student participation and engagement, enabling all students to benefit from a non-traditional classroom layout, but no academic research exists. The SPaCE methodology involves capture of data about the physical environment (lighting, temperature, air quality etc) simultaneously with the student experience in typical classrooms (through physical measurements, Sensory Profile questionnaires, observations, interviews and focus groups). This multi-method data set will provide us with a better understanding of conditions and how they are experienced by students, and to identify areas for improvement, to be implemented in a campus demonstrator project. The aim of the project is to provide guidelines for improved teaching provision, in terms of sensory processing issues, for dissemination within the wider education sector. This paper reports on an on-going project – the main rationale and methodology are described, with a focus on the mixed-method data collection approach and setup of the pilot study. dc.description: The file attached to this record is the author's final peer reviewed version. The Publisher's final version can be found by following the URI link.
The Co-creation, Connectivism and Collaboration Jigsaw; assembling the puzzle pieces for a successful multi-disciplinary student learning experience
dc.title: The Co-creation, Connectivism and Collaboration Jigsaw; assembling the puzzle pieces for a successful multi-disciplinary student learning experience dc.contributor.author: Bassford, Marie; O'Sullivan, Angela; Bacon, Joanne; Crisp, Annette; Nichols-Drew, L.; Fowler, Mark R. dc.description.abstract: CrashEd is a multi-disciplinary, cross-Faculty, University project that arose from five academics’ collaborative commitment to develop a car crash scenario as a widening participation activity. The success of the outreach project culminated in the inspiration to develop more academically challenging forensic scenarios for study at Higher Education level. The ethos of the Forensic Investigation module is on realistic, scenario-based learning and assessment methods, and involves subject specialists across five Schools, an FE college and the Leicestershire Constabulary. CrashEd team members and the police Forensic Crash Investigator have delivered their specialist expertise on anatomy and physiology, ballistics and trauma injuries to students on a local college FdA Theatrical Make-up and Special Effects course. These students have reciprocated the collaboration with the development of bespoke prosthetic resources designed from remits written by University Forensic Science students. The result is realistic latex ‘injuries’ for use as teaching and assessment tools for the new undergraduate module (optional for Physics, Mathematics, Criminology and Forensic Science students). This is a novel example of students working as co-creators. This study involves an investigation into the practicalities, benefits and challenges of co-creation and collaborative work; for example, the expanded specialist knowledge base available to the Physics and Maths undergraduates has provided them with wider vocational career awareness. The connectivist approach has stretched students to think across subject boundaries; a great motivator that has enhanced student engagement. The specialist resources provided by the police have enabled students to learn from real life simulations; a truly ‘hands on’ experiential learning environment.

Click here to view a full listing of Marie Bassford's publications and outputs

Research interests/expertise

Optics/Imaging Technology, STEM pedagogy.

Areas of teaching

Current: ENGD1101 Engineering Mathematics 1, ENGD3000 Individual Project,

Past: IMAT2203 Clasical Mechanics, PHYS1001 Physics Fundamentals, PHYS2002 Optics, PHYS4001 Physics Project, STEM2001 Forensic Investigation, STEM2002 Education for Mathematics and Physics, TECH1004 Media Capture and Processing, TECH2004 Video and Imaging Techniques, TECH2003 Electronic Sound and Vision, TECH3025 Imaging Technology.

Qualifications

MPhys Physics (1997 from the University of Leicester)

PhD Physics (2001 from the University of Leicester)

Courses taught

BEng/MEng Electrical Engineering, BEng/MEng Mechanical Engineering, BEng/MEng Aeronautical Engineering, BEng/MEng Energy Engineering, BEng/MEng Mechatronics, BSc/MPhys Physics, BSc Multimedia Computing, BSc Media Technology, BSc Media Production, BSc Audio and Recording Technology

Honours and awards

Advance HE "Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence" (CATE award) 2018

Membership of external committees

British Science Association, Treasurer (Leicestershire Branch)

Membership of professional associations and societies

Member of the Institute of Physics MInstP 2001 to present

Projects

CrashEd - An interactive learning experience, delivered by De Montfort University, showcasing STEM subjects in a hands-on car crash scenario.

Consultancy work

2011 Consultancy project with Rolls Royce (Civil Nuclear)

2012 Consultancy project with Rolls Royce (On-wing)

2013 Consultancy for iForce

2014 Consultancy for Everards Brewery

Internally funded research project information

Project Title: Evaluating the Performance of Physics Students on the Autistic Spectrum within HE.

Funding Source: Teaching Innovation Project (TIP 2017), awarded February 2017.

Role: Principal Investigator.

Project Title: Development of forensic investigation cross-faculty module and crime scene outreach activities across the maths/physics/forensic subject disciplines.

Funding Source: Teaching Innovation Project (TIP 2015), awarded June 2015. Project commenced July 2015.

Role: Co-Principal Investigator.

Project Title: Development of crime scene outreach activities and investigation into a cross-faculty module across the maths/physics/forensic subject disciplines.

Funding Source: Teaching Innovation Project (TIP 2014), awarded June 2014. Project commenced September 2014.

Role: Co-Principal Investigator.

Project Title: From Proof-of-Principle to Prototype: Industry Applications of Novel Visual Environment Sensor.

Funding Source: Higher Education Innovation Fund for Research (HEIF Round 5), Networking funding awarded August 2014.

Role: Co-Principal Investigator.

Project Title: Development of a novel visual environment sensor for advanced monitoring applications to improve comfort, well-being and energy efficiency in buildings.

Funding Source: Higher Education Innovation Fund for Research (HEIF Round 5), awarded summer 2013. Proof of principle funding awarded January 2014.

Role: Co-Principal Investigator.

Project Title: Medical and industrial applications of multi-exposure imaging on portable, cost-effective programmable cameras.

Funding Source: Revolving Investment Fund for Research (RIF Round 4), awarded December 2012. Project commenced January 2013.

Role: Principal Investigator.