College of Social Sciences

Peer-to-Peer Workshop Series: Reimagined Research

Why did you take part in the Peer-to-Peer programme? 

Betty: Personally, I love knowledge exchange activities. I did a lot of workshops and training courses for teachers and school leaders in my previous job. I discovered that I enjoyed that process of scaffolding a big concept into learning steps. 

Amina: The opportunity to engage in meaningful conversations during seminars, lectures, and informal settings aligns with my belief in collaborative learning and enhances my sense of belonging in the Glasgow academic community. 

What inspired you to run 'Reimagined Research' and what did you hope to achieve? 

Betty: The 'Reimagined Research' project is a platform for PGRs at the School of Education to share their research using the PechaKucha (PK) format which is both imaginative and visually appealing. Since PK format is growing in popularity as a research presentation strategy, but there are not many (free) training resources for it, we decided to concentrate on it. 

Amina: The first session focuses on training participants in creating slides and preparing for the Pecha Kucha presentation style. The second session involves a scholarly competition where participants present their research topics. Winners not only had the chance to receive awards but also benefited from constructive feedback provided by both the audience and a panel of judges. 

Take us through the process of setting up and running your workshops. 

Betty: We had several meetings online and in-person to agree on the details and made several important decisions or amendments prior to the events. We also consulted with our friends Luyi and Hope who completed their P2P project before us. 

Amina: What pleasantly surprised me was the unexpected aspect of being compensated based on the hours dedicated to the project. This not only instilled a sense of responsibility but also highlighted significant value to the work by ensuring a focus on quality throughout the process.

What lessons did you learn through hosting 'Reimagined Research'?

Betty: I did my own mini research on strategies that will help participants gain understanding of the relationship between images and the key messages they want to share, and how they can produce an engaging presentation using the PK format. 

Amina: Effective planning, a strong sense of responsibility towards peers, and collaborative team spirit were pivotal in the success of our project. 

If a fellow student was considering taking part in the Peer-to-Peer programme, what would you tell them?

Betty: I will tell them that they should embrace this opportunity to boost their CV as well as gaining valuable experience in developing their confidence in several RDF domains. The lessons they learned will help them in the future especially when they want to communicate their impact and engage others in knowledge exchange programmes.

Amina: I would highly encourage any fellow Ph.D. student to participate in the P2P workshop programme. Our experience was marked by effective planning, a strong sense of responsibility and collaborative team spirit, which greatly enriched the learning environment. 

I believe that the more we share, the more we learn - Betty D Primus