Dr. Kerr's innovative approach to teaching was demonstrated when she collaborated with another lecturer, Dr. Claudine Allen, from the Department of Computing, to develop a hybrid lab program for conducting General Physics labs (PHYS2300). This program was aimed at enabling students who had only experienced labs through simulations to engage in experiments through the guidance of their classmates. The program involved a rotating system, where some students were physically present in the lab and partnered with others online. The following week, some of the students who were online would be in the lab, and those who were present the previous week would be online. Online students experienced the labs through cameras set up at the experiment points, and the footage was streamed through several chatrooms in Zoom. Not only did online students observe, but they were also required to assist those in the lab with set-up information and data collection for the experiments.

To encourage more interactions among students during the online learning process, Dr. Kerr introduced ‘Lucidspark’ into her courses for tutorials and discussions. ‘Lucidspark’ provided the class with a live community board, where students could interact with content and share their ideas during the session. This platform allowed students to discuss and correct each other, making the course more effective and removing the distance in online learning.

Dr. Kerr also adjusted her final year Material Science courses to make them more practical, implementing projects through a client. For instance, PHYS3562 required the students to apply knowledge gained in the course to solve an actual material science problem that a graduate student (not in material science) had. The graduate student represented the client, and the students had to present the solution to the client at the end of the semester.

Dr. Kerr's approach to teaching is impressive, and her passion for the subject matter is evident in her ability to find solutions to complex problems. She fosters a deep appreciation and curiosity for the subject among her students.

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