Amanda Geary

An experienced and qualified Writer and Digital Journalist and Storyteller, with more than 25 years experience of working in the media. An expert in factual writing and producing video and audio content for a range of platforms, including: news, features, sub-editing and layout and design of newspapers, magazines and websites, and in social media management. With expertise in audio and video production, script writing, research, and presenting skills, as well as in short film production – including digital storytelling. Specialist knowledge in the subject areas of: applied nutrition; teaching and learning for professional development; female entrepreneurship; and gender equality in the workplace and home.

Issue 1 of the LEADS Magazine!

Q: Differentiation, where students within the same class are given different tasks appropriate to their skill level, is a common technique in schools (as I understand it). I was wondering if it is used in higher education, and if so, how it is done and whether there is evidence for it being successful? A: Drawing from published research, differentiation has been shown to be successful in HE primarily if the students are aware of stratified options and their benefits, and, additionally, if the I

Issue 2 of the LEADS Magazine!

Q: When is ethical permission required for educational research/scholarship and when is it not? I'm thinking about Moodle analytics, class sizes, grades. And will journals have the same rules for this as UofG? A: The short answer is that, although these datasets are routinely collected and made available to you as a staff member, if you want to publish in any form, ethics approval is required. Most importantly, research participants must be told that this will happen. All data from, or about,

Issue 3 of the LEADS Magazine - the Conferences Issue!

Registration for the 11th Annual Learning and Teaching Conference is now open! This year, the Conference will run for two days on 28th and 29th March, with an overall theme of Learning Spaces and a sub-theme on day one of Visualisation in Learning and Teaching. Full details of the two-day programme and a link to register can be found on the LEADS web pages. This year, we have three keynote speakers. On day one, we welcome Dr Claudia Krebs from the University of British Columbia, who will give

LEADS Magazine - Issue 4 April 2018

Welcome to the second issue of 2018 If you've missed any previous issues, check out the LEADS Magazine's new home-from-home on the main University website where we'll keep a list of back issues and collate all of our Ask the Experts answers in one place - glasgow.ac.uk/LEADS/Magazine. Before we link you off any other resources, we'd really appreciate a few minutes(no more than 4 - we promise) of your time to help us evaluate the communications we send out here in LEADS. We'd love to know what
Hackademically Speaking •

A long road ahead for gender equality in politics?

FOR more than 25 years now, I have had a keen eye focused on the issue of female representation in politics. It is disappointing to say that it has been a matter that has stayed on my radar all of my adult life. I studied the history (and the under representation) of women in politics in depth while I was an undergraduate at the University of Liverpool. Gender inequality in politics was still blatantly apparent during the various Local and General Elections that I covered while I worked as a
Hackademically Speaking •

Living and Breathing the News: A Learning Experience

During the past five days, my Honours students have lived and breathed life in the newsroom in order to shape their learning experience. Building on their weekly newsdays, the Year 4 BA Journalism students were relocated to Ayr Campus to produce multimedia content Monday through to Friday. The task set involved conducting set roles throughout the week, working together in a fresh environment to consistently deliver and publish their efforts via uwsnews.co.uk. Students were allocated roles inc
Hackademically Speaking •

Tweet, Like, Share: Book Launch Day for Collaborative Project

Some projects are the result of the best-laid plans and others simply can come out of nowhere. A few months ago, I came across a call for authors to get involved in an innovative collaborative project on Twitter. The ‘New Social Media, New Social Science’ project (or #NSMNSS) was seeking different voices and experiences to include in its ‘Book of Blogs’. It aimed to examine the blurring of the boundaries, in terms of using social media for social research. Part of a network led jointly by Na
Hackademically Speaking •

Inside the 21st Century Multi-platform Newsroom

Taking time to go and see journalism produced in the raw can be a luxury for many hackademics. Therefore I seized the opportunity to spend a day observing the multi-platform and digital journalism operations at BBC Scotland’s Pacific Quay. There were many lessons that I learned during my time observing and talking to the journalists from the Online team, the radio production staff, the Reporting Scotland producers, VT editors, and reporters. But there were also a number of procedures, values
Hackademically Speaking •

Reflecting on Journalism Education: My History, Our History

Two things have happened in the last 24 hours that have caused me to reflect on the progress and evolution of Journalism education. Firstly, a new association with the University where I studied for my Postgraduate Diploma in Newspaper Journalism has caused me to revisit the town – a place that I have passed through many times but to which I have not returned for 20 years, until now. Of course a combination of progress and a natural distortion of my memories of the exact location of certain pl
Hackademically Speaking •

Social Media Abuzz for Scottish Referendum Day

‘Tweet, like, share, … vote’ have become buzz words directly associated with the Scottish Referendum. Arguably, social media platforms have become ‘the place’ for political dialogue as the referendum campaigns and polls have been discussed, opinions posted, and the latest data released. We can pinpoint the Scottish Referendum as having transforming the political communication tools not only for politicians but for the electorate too. No longer are the likes of Twitter, Facebook and YouTube pl
Sano •

Avocado and Poached Egg

This quick and easy avocado breakfast is great for supporting mental health. Avocados and sunflower seeds contain tryptophan, which is known for being a good mood protein that can be converted into the mood-enhancing brain chemical serotonin. The eggs are a good source of protein and as a result, they contain amino acids, which make up the chemicals our brains needs in order to regulate our thoughts and feelings. It also helps to keep us feeling fuller for longer, which is important for blood su
Sano •

Smoked Mackerel & Quinoa Salad

As it is an oily fish, Mackerel provides us with two of the essential fatty acids of Omega 3, EPA and DHA, which can only be obtained from dietary sources and have a number of functions including lifting mood and also may reduce depression. Sweet Potatoes are rich in Vitamin B6, which is incredibly important for mental health, and considered low on the glycaemic index scale A low GI diet is beneficial as it stabilises and evens out blood sugar and enables the energy in our food to be released mu
Sano •

Breakfast Bars

These breakfast bars are a great snack for the afternoon. Oats are a good choice when it comes to the health of your digestive system and can ease constipation. They contain soluble fibre in the form of beta-glucan, which dissolves inside the digestive tract where it forms a gel. Dates have been identified as one of the very best sweet and versatile foods that can regulate the digestive process, and they have been shown to help provide relief from a range of intestinal disorders.
Sano •

Red Lentil Soup

• None Rinse the red lentils and place in a large saucepan containing cold water • None Bring the lentils to a rolling boil in a saucepan for 20 minutes. Remove any foam that floats to the top of the water in the saucepan at regular intervals, and drain • None Peel, slice and dice, the onion, garlic, and carrots • None Heat 1 tbsp of olive oil in a frying pan on the hob to a moderate heat • None Add the cumin seeds to the frying pan for 20-30 seconds or until they are fragrant • None Fry the on
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