‘Everyone should have Matt as a teacher’

Each year, the Ultuna Student Union awards a Pedagogical Prize to an outstanding teacher who demonstrates dedication and pedagogical innovation.

In the nomination, Matt's students on the Evolution and Ecology introductory course for the EoD programme highlight his teaching skills and his passion for his subject. He teaches in English, but this is not a problem ('despite his Australian accent'). Even those who normally struggle with English follow along. Students also like that he listens to them and encourages discussion and reflection. They wish all students could have Matt as a teacher.

“It was a huge surprise and I felt humbled that my students thought to nominate me. It gave me gave me a huge lift, an energy boost”, says Matt, teacher and researcher at the Department of Ecology.

But the award is not just important to him personally. It's a way of recognising something that Matt feels is often overlooked.

“Normally our focus is on the research achievements at our university with almost no attention paid to the critical role played by our teachers to motivate and inspire the next generation of scientists and policy makers. From an institutional perspective, these awards keep teaching in our collective consciousness and remind us of its importance to our students,” says Matt.

He thinks that the idea that ‘being a good researcher helps your teaching’ is backwards; it is through teaching that we become better researchers.

“Teaching gives me the energy and passion to continue working in science through the daily positive interactions with my students and by forcing me to constantly re-evaluate my own understanding of the subject through their questions,” says Matt.

This award comes from the students at the Animal Behaviour and Welfare (EoD) programme. Matt also teaches statistics and programming to PhD students from within the doctoral research schools, and recently began teaching the introductory pedagogic course for SLU staff.

“For me the subject matter isn’t the important thing, rather it is the challenge in finding ways to translate the material into something that captures the students’ imagination, helps them see its utility and inspires them to continue studying, and think and act critically long after my lessons have ended.”

"Teaching provides an opportunity to directly reach others in a way that research cannot. So why wouldn’t you want to teach?”

Read more about Matthew Low  

Text: Anna Lundmark

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