Experiences from the Southern Hemisphere: First year chemistry and remote online teaching and learning

Traditionally, the Australian academic year commences in the first week of March, and in 2020 the first year chemistry team at Monash University were finalising preparations to start the semester. What we had not counted on was the rapid onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the impact that would have on our well-planned and structured teaching and learning delivery for semester one. Within one week we went from a blended learning environment that included key face-to-face delivery of active learning workshops, collaborative tutorials and wet lab programme, to being forced to move the entire programme online, and quickly. The timeline forced us to improvise quick solutions in less-than-ideal circumstances to deliver what has been termed emergency remote teaching.[1]
What differentiated the Australian experience from our counterparts in the Northern Hemisphere was the timing of the disruption, raising specific issues around student transition to university, and conducting the laboratory programme for students with no prior laboratory exposure.
Herein we report our experience on what our teaching and learning delivery consisted of, and how we elicited continuous student feedback to respond to their needs throughout the semester. In addition, we are able to give insights into both the teacher and student perceptions of the semester, and reflect on what we have learned and are able to use to improve our teaching and learning experience in the future.