This month we’re getting to know Paula Fonseca from the School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science.

Who am I?

My name is Paula Fonseca and I am a lecturer on the QMUL-BUPT Joint Programme (JP). I do most of my teaching (and UG project supervision) on the JP but have always also taught UG modules (and at one point, supervised MSc projects too) in EECS (School of Electronic Engineering and Computer Science). My other work “hat” is to support EECS students when applying to do a year abroad, as well as international associate students who choose to do EECS modules. I have been acting as the Learning Technologist (LT) for the JP since 2014.

One of the achievements I am most proud of (painful though it was at the time), is to have coordinated the implementation move to a purely online teaching delivery on the JP at the start of the pandemic, including online exams. We made extensive use of QMplus, Echo360 and Blackboard Collaborate (now replaced with MS Teams) for remote teaching including dealing with the 7/8 hours time difference (previously, lecturers would fly to Beijing). Due to ongoing constraints in China, teaching is still mostly online, so lessons learnt from the pandemic continue to be useful in making small adjustments as conditions change.

Teaching on the JP and in EECS gives me exposure to different mindsets, as well as two different approaches to teaching delivery. I hope that has helped me support my colleagues and students on the JP, in my LT role.

Projects I am currently working on

In terms of LT related projects, I am working on improving the accessibility of the BUPT JP course areas.

What I enjoy doing

I like travelling, walking in the countryside and ice skating! With Winter approaching, I am looking forward to a few sessions on the ice and hopefully more adventurous travelling next Summer (adding to the 50+ countries already visited), after a couple of enforced gap years …