Teacher: Dr Irina Dedova, pictured below, has been teaching anatomy at Macquarie for three years. She is a discipline lead for Anatomy at the Department of Chiropractic.
Groundwork: Irina holds the equivalent of the Australian Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery (MBBS) from overseas, and a PhD in Medicine from The University of Sydney.
Gold stars: Irina has received multiple learning and teaching awards. She was nominated and chosen for the 2023 Vice-Chancellor’s Learning and Teaching Student-nominated Award. She has also authored and co-authored more than 35 peer-reviewed publications.
How Irina’s students describe her: Irina’s students say she is like a ‘cool mum’, approachable, caring and empathetic.
What Irina says:
My passion for anatomy has taken me into academia, and now I can fully focus on what I love most - teaching. I have more than 20 years’ experience in designing educational innovation in higher education and have taught at three major universities, Macquarie University, University of New South Wales and Western Sydney University. I have designed, convened and co-convened various anatomy and physiology units for medicine, medical sciences, clinical sciences, exercise physiology, physiotherapy, biomedical engineering, optometry, chiropractic and other programs.
I am passionate about my discipline and I translate this to my students. Many of my past students now work at major Australian universities teaching anatomy. There is a huge number of health professionals who work, help others and who have been influenced by their learning experiences in the units I have taught. As teachers, we bear a huge responsibility. What we do has a long-lasting effect on so many people.
I feel a tremendous responsibility for students’ wellbeing and progress in their studies. This does not mean that I am a soft marker, or I set low expectations. In fact, it is quite the opposite. As academics, we have the superpower of educational design which allows us to build learning environments that support students’ success, wellbeing and their future. I have completed a Graduate Certificate in University Learning and Teaching to enhance my ‘superpowers’.
What I love most about teaching is seeing the transformation, development and personal and professional growth of students, in all aspects in their journey through university life. This goes way beyond the disciplinary knowledge. There are so many important skills our students master, such as how to work in teams, how to work with integrity, what it means to become a professional and how to be a critical thinker. It is amazing to watch and contribute positively to individual students developing their study skills. Studying efficiently, self-management and self-determination are all lifelong skills that set our students up for life, and enable their success and happiness.
I love having a noisy, busy atmosphere in my classroom. To be healthy and happy, students need to be connected and participate mindfully in university life and studies. Studying in isolation, missing out on getting to know peers and attending face-to-face classes often impacts negatively on mental wellbeing. I am especially concerned for those who are far from home or live alone. I do my best to attract students to my classes - by making them fun and interactive - and providing opportunities to get to know and connect with their peers.
For students, time management is one of the biggest challenges. It is not easy to balance work, health issues, family responsibilities and travel time with studies. Some students also have difficulty staying focused and can get side-tracked. A well-structured educational process is extremely helpful in assisting with time management. This means that as teachers we must be realistic in our expectations. We must make sure that all learning activities and assessments are strongly aligned with learning outcomes and planned in smaller chunks to allow students to progress continuously week by week. Announcing dates and flagging important milestones is also very important.
I would like students to view me as … their rock and their biggest fan. I would like them to see my passion for anatomy, education and personal development and to be ‘infected’ by and resonate with it. I have a strong interest in my students’ progress. I celebrate their successes and I take their losses to heart. I do everything in my power to enable my students to succeed. We are a team working together towards common goals.
The perfect student is … one who is curious and motivated, who is not afraid to challenge existing concepts and who asks lots of questions. The perfect student is OK with making mistakes and learning from them.
Dr Irina Dedova is a Senior Lecturer in Anatomy in the Department of Chiropractic.
