Welcome to eSTEeM

The OU Centre for STEM Pedagogy

eSTEeM is the Faculty of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics centre for STEM pedagogy based at The Open University. Established in 2010, eSTEeM brings together STEM academic, academic-related staff and students to promote the scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL) in open and distance learning.

Our portfolio of projects includes work on assessment, technologies for STEM learning and improved methods of student support. Many of our scholarship projects focus on how we can enhance the student experience with an increasing number investigating and evaluating innovative approaches to teaching and learning in STEM.

What is scholarship?

Scholarship refers to a set of activities which lead to evidence-informed innovation that will enhance teaching and learning for the benefit of students.

Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) is important in three respects:

For students allowing us to systematically evaluate our teaching to improve the quality of student learning;

For academic disciplines and institutions ensuring that we base innovation and future development on robust evaluation and enabling our teaching and learning to be recognised externally for its excellence and impact;

For practitioners allowing staff to develop their professional practice in the field of teaching and learning.