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After morning pastries and a welcome from Kate O\u2019Riordan, the convenors of the new Progressive Futures flagship electives formed the first session, in a panel discussion also hosted by Kate. We were reminded of Sussex\u2019s rich interdisciplinary history and heard about how rewarding the convenors have found working together to design the new electives. The new modules, based on the three Sussex transformational themes, will be taken by the majority of all new first year undergraduates in the autumn. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nWe spent the rest of the morning enjoying rich presentations in parallel sessions, on topics such as experiential, creative and playful learning, inclusive pedagogy and using AI in the classroom. The lightning talks offered snapshots of projects, classroom interventions and research, all aimed at improving student experience and the way we teach at Sussex. The full programme can be found here<\/a>. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nAt lunch, Perpetua Kirby offered a lunchtime walk. Colleagues took their packed lunch to the Forest Food Garden, to hear more about the opportunities available to use the garden in their own teaching. The team are currently looking for volunteers to help out in the garden- the next volunteering day is on Thursday 30 July<\/a>. \n\n <\/p> \nThe last two parallel sessions of the day focused on building student wellbeing and supporting student transitions into higher education. \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nWe closed the packed day with a roundtable: \u2018Build it and students will come? Insights from staff and students on attendance\u2019. The session brought together staff working on student engagement and participation with student connectors, who have received training on curriculum design and worked with fellow students to understand barriers to engaging in teaching sessions. The format wove together staff presentations with rich discussion and insights from student connectors. Our discussions took the outcomes of a recent report by Estelle Marks and Jenny Chanfreau<\/a> as a starting point. The report uses survey and qualitative data to explore the reasons behind declining student attendance in our classrooms. \n<\/p> \nLara McMurtry, chair of the Education Festival Steering Group, reflected on the day: \n<\/p>\n\n\n\n \nWe\u2019ll leave you with Kate O\u2019Riordan\u2019s final reflections: \n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n \n \n On 8 May, over 100 colleagues from across the university attended the fourth Sussex Education Festival. This year\u2019s festival was our biggest yet- with more applications to present, and more colleagues attending than any previous year. The content of the…<\/span><\/p>\n![\"13](\"http:\/\/blogs.sussex.ac.uk\/learning-matters\/files\/2026\/06\/Screenshot-2026-06-15-at-18.09.53.png\")
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<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\nIt was lovely to see so many colleagues across the institution, sharing ideas, celebrating great practice and engaging in thoughtful conversations about education and student experience. Bringing staff and students together for the closing roundtable discussion felt like a really positive way to end the day. There was a real sense of energy, openness and community throughout, which made this year\u2019s Festival such a big success. \n<\/blockquote><\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Education Festival is a core event in the academic year at Sussex, and has gone from strength to strength. This is thanks to the excellent support from the Educational Enhancement team and the Education and Scholarship Committee. My thanks to everyone involved in this. Highlights this year included:
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