Department of Physics
Lead Staff partner(s): Prof Paul Dauncey
Student partner(s): Mohammad Majlisi, Jeffrey Tang, Alexandra Hoehl, Lashuka Merrick
Project area: Educational Research
Background for project
This project investigates whether introducing a mid‑term reading week would improve learning, wellbeing, and academic engagement for undergraduate Physics students at 51³Ô¹ÏÍø. A mixed staff–student research team will use surveys, interviews, focus groups, and existing literature to examine student and staff experiences of intense workload, stress, and lack of consolidation time, and to evaluate the potential benefits and risks of different reading‑week models. The project aims to generate robust evidence and a feasible implementation plan that the department can act on. The ultimate goal is to enable deeper learning, better workload management, improved mental and physical health, and more sustainable teaching and learning practices within the Physics department and beyond.
This project is due to run Summer 2026 – watch this space for outputs and outcomes!