Centre for Learning and Teaching

D2L Innovation in Teaching and Learning Award


Dalhousie University's First Year Chemistry Online Development Team is the recipient of a 2022 D2L Innovation in Teaching and Learning Award.

The annual award recognizes post-secondary collaborative teams for their innovative approaches that promote student-centred teaching and learning.

Recipients of the 2022 D2L Innovation in Teaching and Learning Award: First Year Chemistry Online Development Team


First Year Chemistry Online Development Team

  • Dr. Angela Crane (Senior Instructor, First Year Program Coordinator), Department of Chemistry, Dalhousie University 
  • Dr. Jennifer L. MacDonald (Instructor, University Teaching Fellow), Department of Chemistry, Dalhousie University
  • Dr. Mark Wall Instructor (PTA), Department of Chemistry, Dalhousie University
  • Dr. Joseph Tassone (Postdoctoral Fellow) Ellman Lab, Yale Univeristy
  • Adrienne Allison (PhD Candidate), Department of Chemistry, Dalhousie University
  • Reem Karaballi (PhD Student), Department of Chemistry, Dalhousie University
  • Michael Charlton (Graduate TA), Department of Chemistry, Dalhousie University
  • Isabel Curtis (Graduate TA), Department of Chemistry, Dalhousie University
  • Robert Foisy (Undergraduate TA), Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Dalhousie University
  • Landon Getz (PhD Candidate), Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Dalhousie University
  • Patrick Giesbrecht (PhD Candidate), Department of Chemistry, Dalhousie University
  • Kirsten Jones (Graduate TA), Department of Chemistry, Dalhousie University
  • Erin Lyle (Graduate TA), Department of Chemistry, Dalhousie University
  • Matthew Margeson (PhD Student), Department of Chemistry, Dalhousie University
  • Sarah Martell (PhD Candidate), Department of Chemistry, Dalhousie University
  • Nicholas Roberts (Undergraduate TA), Department of Chemistry, Dalhousie University
  • Joseph Weatherby (Graduate TA), Department of Chemistry, Dalhousie University

Bringing First Year Chemistry Online with Students as Partners through Universal Design

During the COVID-19 pandemic, an innovative Students-as-Partners collaboration was utilized to build short screen-capture video content and interactive quiz-style questions. Lab content was brought to life through a 360° interactive lab tour, experimental content delivery to support real-time data/observation acquisition and the ability to make experimental mistakes and see the results of those errors. Students could choose the way they wished to view an experiment, which greatly helped those with colour vision deficiencies or devices with low-resolution. Over 50 custom interactive online modules (containing over 1000 videos!) have been created and successfully delivered to over 2600 students across various faculties.