" “It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.” (Aristotle) According to a recent study by the Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), funded by the Health and Safety Authority, the instances of work-related stress amongst employees in Ireland has doubled between 2010 and 2015. Work-Related Stress (WRS) is stress caused or made worse by work. It simply refers to when a person perceives the work environment in such a way that his or her reaction involves feelings of an inability to cope. ‘Stress occurs when an individual perceives an imbalance between the demands placed on them on the one hand, and their ability to cope on the other. It often occurs in situations characterised by low levels of control and support.’ (Professor Tom Cox, I-WHO, University of Nottingham, UK). As we all know, higher education can be a particularly stressful environment for both staff and students due to a variety of competing demands and deadlines at various stages during the academic year, many of which are beyond their control. Rather than just focusing on students, this workshop was all about staff and helping them survive! It aimed to provide participants with some suggestions to help reduce, or at least manage, some of the causes and effects of stress and hopefully help participants to take control of their workload and stress levels. Participants who attended this workshop: Identified strategies that could be utilised to better manage their workload Became more aware of the signs and symptoms of stress Identified some useful strategies to help deal with stress Examined the value of feedback on lectures and the importance of reflecting on one’s teaching for one’s own professional development Discussed some of the shared challenges faced in higher education today and potential solutions"

How can we inspire our students to learn? How can we engage them, and keep them engaged? How best can we use the tools available to us in this digital age to enthuse them? What are the processes which underpin successful learning now? How can we ourselves be inspired and enthused, so that we enjoy our work as teachers more than ever? These are some of the questions that were explored in this interactive workshop on learning and teaching in the 21st Century. By the end of this workshop, participants had: Explored some answers to the questions above, and thought of better ones; Shared ideas with each other and with Phil; Discussed the need to re-invent feedback and assessment for the 21st Century