Special Interest Groups (SIGs)

For timely and personalised feedback or assessment, software can be used. Specialist software is needed if the subject matter is mathematical. There is a range of software available, but it requires specialist skills to use effectively.

Software for Online Mathematical Questions brings together staff at Imperial interested in this area. Our members include academic staff who use the software, EdTech colleagues who support its implementation, and ICT staff who manage the systems. While most members are from the Faculties of Engineering and Natural Sciences, we welcome colleagues from across Imperial.

Meeting termly since early 2020, we share practice, discuss our own work, review different software packages, and invite external speakers. We are a supportive community, happy to help colleagues who are new to this area. Join us to learn about current practice at Imperial and make new connections with others working on online mathematical assessment.

The SIG is led by:

• Phil Ramsden (Professor of Mathematics Education, Department of Mathematics)
• Masoud Seifikar (Senior Teaching Fellow in Computational Engineering, Department of Aeronautics)
• Ioanna Papatsouma (Principal Teaching Fellow, Department of Mathematics)

Teaching laboratories are an essential part of many undergraduate STEM courses, providing students with opportunities to develop the practical skills needed to succeed as scientists and engineers.

Although the focus of teaching labs varies between disciplines, many aspects including pedagogy, assessment, and logistics are shared across subject areas. The Teaching Labs SIG brings together colleagues to share effective practice and ideas, support the wider community involved in laboratory teaching, and promote excellence in the student experience.

The SIG is led by:

• Michael Fox (Principal Teaching Fellow, Department of Physics)
• Peter Johnson (Principal Lecturer, Department of Mechanical Engineering)

Professional competencies are an essential part of the skills employers expect from graduates. They feature in Imperial’s Graduate Attributes and may also form part of the requirements for professionally accredited degrees.

Although the specific competencies vary across faculties, there is considerable common ground in the graduate outcomes and student experience we aim to provide. This SIG offers a forum for sharing ideas, discussing initiatives, and fostering cross-disciplinary collaboration.

The SIG is led by:

• Zohaib Akhtar (Senior Teaching Fellow, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering)
• Deesha Chadha (Principal Teaching Fellow, Department of Chemical Engineering)
• Sharan Dhaliwal (Learning Technologist, Faculty of Medicine Centre)

This SIG brings together practitioners from across disciplines to exchange ideas, share practice, and develop resources relating to assessment and feedback. It also provides a space to explore innovation and respond to emerging challenges in this area.

The group will initially draw on examples from the Anatomy of Assessment resource to showcase practice across the university and stimulate discussion. Topics will include approaches to assessing group work, embedding AI in assessment, developing students’ feedback literacy, innovative assessment methods, peer assessment, dialogic feedback, and sector-wide challenges in assessment and feedback.

The SIG is led by:

• Monika Rossiter (Principal Teaching Fellow, Centre for Higher Education Research and Scholarship)
• Ioanna Papatsouma (Principal Teaching Fellow, Department of Mathematics)
• Jonathan Rackham (Senior Strategic Teaching Fellow, Department of Materials)
• Tim Kimber (Senior Teaching Fellow, Department of Computing)
• Vijay Tymms (Principal Teaching Fellow, Department of Physics)

Emotion is central to every learning and teaching experience, for both students and staff. Yet its role in educational practice is not always consciously considered. Interest is growing across STEMM higher education in how emotion influences learning and teaching, and how it can be understood and used to improve the experiences of everyone involved.

This SIG brings together staff who support learning to explore the role of emotion in education and consider how it relates to our experiences at Imperial.

Through termly sessions, we will discuss how positive and negative emotions influence students’ experiences and learning outcomes; the role universities can play in helping students regulate their emotions during challenging learning experiences; and how emotions spread within cohorts and can inform the design of teaching, assessment, and feedback.

We will also consider how the emotions experienced by teachers and other staff influence educational practice.

The SIG is led by:

• Kate Ippolito (Principal Lecturer, Centre for Higher Education Research and Scholarship)
• Catherine Mansfield (Senior Strategic Teaching Fellow, Department of Life Sciences)
• Manuela Mura (Senior Teaching Fellow, Faculty of Medicine Centre)

This SIG brings together colleagues from across the university to share good practice, resources, and innovative approaches to supporting student transition and progression from school to university, between years of study, into postgraduate education, and towards employment.

Transition encompasses academic and social integration, skills development, student and professional identity, and ongoing academic support. The SIG provides a forum for colleagues from teaching, liaison, academic support, the Graduate School, Careers Service, and the Students’ Union to share expertise and collaborate on transition-related initiatives.

Each meeting will focus on a specific theme, such as admissions, induction, skills development, continuing undergraduate support, or postgraduate transition. Through panel discussions, presentations, and interactive activities, the SIG will encourage diverse perspectives and help colleagues adapt effective practice across the university.

The SIG is led by:

• Tiffany Chiu (Principal Teaching Fellow in Educational Development, Centre for Higher Education Research and Scholarship)
• Magda Charalambous (Principal Lecturer, Department of Life Sciences)
• Jackie Bell (Principal Teaching Fellow, Department of Computing)
• Jon Fenton (Senior Strategic Teaching Fellow, Department of Physics)

The Playful Learning SIG brings together colleagues with an interest in sharing knowledge, ideas, and practice relating to playful learning techniques. As higher education shifts from a focus on knowledge transfer towards skills development and problem-solving, students increasingly expect more immersive and engaging experiences. Playful learning offers a powerful way to enhance learning and teaching, while supporting physical, mental, social, and emotional wellbeing. Unlike high-stakes exercises or assessments, where students may focus on avoiding failure, play creates safe spaces for experimentation, contingency, and creativity.

The SIG provides a platform for colleagues across Imperial to share their work, ideas, and insights, and to explore best practice in making learning more interactive and playful. We meet once a term for lively discussions, presentations, demonstrations, and networking, offering opportunities to collaborate and consider how playful learning can enhance the student experience.

The SIG is led by:

• Giskin Day (Principal Lecturer, Faculty of Medicine Centre)
• Mahsa Samadi (Senior Teaching Fellow, Faculty of Medicine Centre)

The Generative AI in Education SIG explores the applications, opportunities, and challenges of using generative AI tools in educational contexts. It provides a forum for discussion and collaboration among staff involved in education. All staff are welcome to join the SIG’s Teams site, whether or not they are actively involved in generative AI projects, to share and access the latest news, updates, and events.

SIG meetings focus on current projects involving the development, implementation, and research of generative AI tools for education. Topics include:

• using custom GPTs and chatbots within modules to support student learning;
• applying large language models in coding courses while maintaining intended learning outcomes;
• developing the code, infrastructure, and collaboration needed to build robust AI tools for education;
• exploring open-source AI tools and platforms to create scalable and customisable solutions across the University; and
• evaluating the impact of generative AI on student learning, as well as staff and student attitudes towards its use.

The SIG is led by:

• Konstantinos Gkoutzis (Principal Teaching Fellow, Department of Computing)
• John Pinney (Senior Teaching Fellow, Early Career Researcher Institute) 

The Active Learning Environments (ALEs) SIG brings together staff who use and support teaching in ALEs, helping to build relationships and share effective practice among current and potential users.

 The SIG also supports educators who want to adopt more active pedagogical approaches in ALEs. It provides a network of stakeholders who can contribute to future decisions about ALEs, as well as support research and evaluation through collaborative projects.

The SIG is led by:

• Luke McCrone (Research Associate, Centre for Higher Education Research and Scholarship)
• Helena Smith (Director of Central Timetabling, Registry)

All students graduating from Imperial should understand how they can apply their education to address societal Grand Challenges, including climate change, biodiversity loss, and other issues covered by the Sustainable Development Goals, in ways that create meaningful positive impact.

This SIG creates a community of practice for staff to explore and develop pedagogical approaches, practical strategies, useful resources, and the support needed to embed education for sustainability in teaching and the wider curriculum.

We welcome contributions from all staff with an interest in this area, whether they are already involved in sustainability projects or not. Our action-focused meetings will showcase examples of good practice and identify recommendations for applying and extending these approaches across Imperial.

The SIG is led by:

• Nigel Forrest (Teaching Fellow, Centre for Environmental Policy)
• Mark Pope (Senior Teaching Fellow, Centre for Languages, Culture and Communications)
• Daisy Pataki (Teaching Fellow, Centre for Languages, Culture and Communications)

The Anti-Racism in STEMMB SIG is a cross-institutional community of practice to share, discuss and critique educational approaches to racial justice and equity.

The SIG aims to explore systemic change, and solutions addressing student and staff race and ethnicity gaps including in access and continuation, progression, student experience, attainment and awarding by way of systems-deficit approach. It brings together Imperial staff at multiple levels and working in areas such as recruitment and admissions, progression, awarding, quality assurance, strategy and policy, and the Race Equality Charter (REC). We encourage participation and contributions from all staff with an interest in equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) – whether you are actively involved in working in EDI or not.

The SIG’s leaders are:

• Nariell Morrison (Clinical Education Fellow (EDI), School of Medicine)
• Sarah Essilfie-Quaye (Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Research Fellow, National Heart & Lung Institute)
• Jenny Husbands (Senior Teaching Fellow, School of Public Health)

This SIG convenes in person only and is not recorded, to maintain a private space for discussion of potentially sensitive topics. Please contact the Education Office if you require a reasonable adjustment in order to attend.

Please note, it is encouraged for all members of the Anti-Racism in STEMMB SIG to complete encourage Imperial’s Introduction to race equity training. You will need to log in to Blackboard and search ‘Introduction to race’ to access the resource. 

The humanities and arts are fundamental expressions of human curiosity and creativity, nurturing our capacity for imagination, storytelling, reflection, analysis, and meaning-making.

This SIG aims to connect colleagues, ideas, and expertise across Imperial, fostering collaboration between the humanities, arts, and STEM disciplines while building a supportive and engaged community. We welcome contributions from anyone with a passion for the humanities or arts who wants to explore their potential for wider impact, regardless of their formal qualifications or professional role.

The SIG is led by:

• Michael Weatherburn (Principal Teaching Fellow, Centre for Languages, Culture and Communication)
• Giulia Frezza (Research Associate in Performing Science, Centre for Performance Science and Department of Surgery & Cancer)

The Communication in STEMMB Education SIG is a cross-institutional community of staff who share, discuss and critically engage with communication practice in academic and professional STEMMB education.

The SIG aims to explore and transform communication practice within STEMMB education, providing a space for Imperial staff involved in teaching, supporting and assessing communication skills to share practice and develop cross-disciplinary collaborations. This is particularly important as generative AI disrupts educational and professional environments.

The SIG focuses on the communication skills students need and how these can be supported equitably, while also considering staff communication practices and the values that shape them. The ‘problem’ is not presumed to be students’ inability to heed advice.

In its first year, the SIG will discuss:

• What communication do students need to learn? Where does this come from, and what are its limits?
• What counts as good communication at Imperial and in students’ future workplaces?
• How can communication be taught and assessed?
• Could inter-departmental collaboration help?

The SIG is led by:

• Rob Playfair (Teacher of English for Academic Purposes, Lifelong Learning)
• Edd Bankes (Teacher of English for Academic Purposes, Lifelong Learning)

Each SIG aspires to meet on a termly basis, with the general aim of providing: 

• Brief, informal updates 
• Networking time 
• A feature discussion, activity, or presentation 

Outside of termly meetings, a SIG provides an informal network when staff need help in their day-to-day practice. For example, tips with technique, finding information, or making new contacts. 

SIGs provide a sense of community and belonging; shared expertise; collaboration; and mutual support.  

For new staff in particular, attending a SIG meeting is a great way to get exposure to activities across Imperial , build a professional support network, and find mentorship. 

For staff with significant experience, SIGs are a way to contribute to the community through group leadership and give informal advice to university management. SIGs facilitate sharing expertise without putting management responsibilities on staff because not all experts need to become managers. 

If you would like to join a SIG, fill out the form here to be added to the mailing list. You will then be informed about future activities. 

SIGs rely on their leaders to organise termly meetings and play a broader, informal leadership role in the community. SIGs have two or more leaders, who are chosen by the group. To become a SIG leader, you should start by joining the regular meetings of the SIG and taking part in community activities. 
 
SIG leaders have the following role: 

• Organise termly meetings: choose time and date to suit members; prepare an agenda; invite guests; event publicity; chair the meeting
• Coordinate with other SIG leaders and the education office, including an annual meeting and responding to requests from Imperial's management for consultancy or contributions to university events 

Please note that the Education Office will assist with room booking and catering orders.

Special Interest Groups (SIGs) are a space for staff across Imperial to discuss topics with like-minded individuals, learn of new developments in a specialist field and share best practices. The SIG network has grown rapidly since its inception and to ensure SIG applications are considered fairly, a new application cycle is being implemented. 

There is an application form to submit your proposal which you can access here

We accept applications at all points throughout the year and will be in touch prior to the end of each term to communicate an outcome. The timeframes you are expected to hear from us are as follows:

• 6th-20th March 2026
• 12th-26th June 2026
• 27th November-11th December 2026

Please note, applications will only be considered for new SIG topics. Be sure to read the descriptions of our current SIGs to avoid duplication. If there is an overlap, it may be that your proposed SIG is included as a topic in an existing SIG.