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15 October 2020 | Story Leonie Bolleurs | Photo Jolandi Griesel
Dr Michael von Maltitz embraces the possibilities that the internet provides for education. He wants his students to be comfortable evaluating and using information from the internet to solve their problems.
“My research in teaching and learning is driven mostly by curiosity – when I feel something is not working in a class, I look for alternatives and I am quick to adopt something new.”

This is how Dr Michael von Maltitz approaches his research. This perspective on things is also what brought him an award from the Centre for Teaching and Learning (CTL) during the Annual UFS Excellence in Learning and Teaching Conference 2020 that was held on 21 and 22 September 2020. 

Dr Von Maltitz, who is Programme Director and Senior Lecturer in the Department of Mathematical Statistics and Actuarial Science, received an Excellence in Learning and Teaching award in the category Technology Enhanced Learning. 

He teaches Causal Inference and Generalised Linear Models for third-year Mathematical Statistics students, and Sampling Distribution Theory for second-year Mathematical Statistics students. 

Follow the lead of practice

Grabbing the attention of the judges, he believes, was his passion for new teaching and learning methods. He is also of the opinion that it is important to embrace the information – the incredible amount of free, valuable content online – that is freely available to staff and students all the time.

“I am passionate about the fact that we need to stop asking our students to write tests when this is not done in that student’s industry. At university, we need to assess knowledge in the same way it is assessed in practice. This ultimately means that information capturing (which is what we expect from students in a textbook-to-test format) should be left to machines and the internet. Critical thinking, knowledge valuation, and self-assessment (i.e. facets of learning how to learn) should be developed while at university.”

“The internet is everywhere now, and we’re fooling ourselves if we think we can teach our students how to navigate their futures without incorporating the internet into our teachings,” he adds.

Dr Von Maltitz embraces the possibilities that the internet provides. “Hopefully, when my students are finished with my modules, they will be more comfortable evaluating and using information from the internet to solve their problems, like I do on a day-to-day basis,” he says. 

Seeking new methods

On receiving this award, Dr Von Maltitz voiced his gratitude for the opportunity to present his ideas and practices; “it suggests that others might find my work useful”.

He says that it helps him feel justified in trying new methods in teaching and learning every year.

Dr Von Maltitz has big plans for the next five years. He wants to make it to Associate Professor, partially on the strength of his teaching and learning portfolio.

“My goal is to ensure that my gradual exploration of my research field in Mathematical Statistics always raises the impact of my modules for my students and improves the quality and quantity of my postgraduate supervision. I also hope that my teaching and learning research will continue to improve my ability to transform my students into life-long learners.”


News Archive

Kovsie artists to rock at Vryfees
2014-06-18

Photo: Conrad Bornman

It is the dead of winter in the heart of the Free State. The Vryfees is laying full steam ahead.

However, the talent that makes of this annual arts festival such a phenomenal success doesn’t only come from outside of our Bloemfontein Campus. This year’s productions will abound with performances by Kovsie staff, students and alumni from our Department of Drama and Theatre Arts.

Behind the scenes, our people will also play a vital role in the achievement and progress of the festival. Prof Luwes is a member of the festival committee and together with Dr Venter and Godfrey Manenye, he also serves on the artistic selection committee for theatre.

Thys Heydenrych, lecturer in the above department, was appointed as the technical manager of this year’s Vryfees. This means that he is in charge of the placement and assigning of venues for productions on campus. All the technical aspects for these venues rest on Heydenrych’s shoulders. For this huge task, he is supported by a team of technical staff which includes mostly students.

Take a look at the list of all our Kovsie artists who are working hard to make the 2014 Vryfees better than ever:

Don Juan onder die Boere
Lecturers: Walter Strydom, Gerben Kamper (director),
Students: Mark Dobson, Michael Garbett, Helet de Wet
Former students: Marijda Kamper (Wynand Mouton theatre manager), Ilne Fourie, Hilletje Möller, Chanmari Erasmus, Michelle Hoffman, An-Mari Loots, Madré van Straten

S(t)out en Peper
Lecturers: Dr Pieter Venter (director), Thys Heydenrych
Former students: Ilne Fourie, Michelle Hoffman

Nag van die Hiëna
Head of Department: Prof Nico Luwes (author and director)
Lecturers: Gerben Kamper, Minette Grové
Former students: Carel Nel, Lindy-Lee Kleynhans, Ilne Fourie, Angelo Mockie (staff member at Student Affairs)
Student: Peter Taljaard (PhD student)

Rondomskrik
Former student: Chrystal-Donna Roberts (currently Pasella presenter and previously on the set of 7de Laan)

Slaaf
Former student: Carel Nel

Te Veel vir ? Coloured Girl
Former students: Angelo Mockie (staff member at Student Affairs), Olivie Sauer

The Bar
Lecturer: Godfrey Manenye (director)
Former students: Angela Edwards, Jane Mpholo
Students: Yoliswa Jacobs and Luandro Carstens

Victoria se Geheim
Lecturer: Dr Pieter Venter (director)
Former students: Chanmari Erasmus, Carel Nel, Gené McCaskill, Michelle Hetzel
Students: Helet de Wet, Marli van der Bijl (NRF Magister Intern), Jana Coetzer, Marnel Bester

Een Kleine Lientjie
Lecturer: Walter Strydom
Former student: Anna Visser (author and director, OFM presenter)
Students: Marli van der Bijl, Charl Henning, Jana Coetzer

For more information on the productions or the Vryfees programme, follow this link:
http://www.vryfees.co.za/

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