Marina Nehme, Scientia Education Academy Fellow

Associate Professor
Marina Nehme

UNSW Law & Justice

 

Marina Nehme is an Associate Professor at UNSW Law. Her teaching philosophy is centered on the motivation of students as she has found that motivated learners have a greater capacity to pursue independent and inquisitive learning which promotes a deeper level of understanding than passive learning and helps develop critical thinking. Marina has received local and national teaching awards including a Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning from the Australian Learning and Teaching Council.

Her dedication to legal education is also apparent by her various contributions to this area in scholarship and service. She has presented a range of papers on legal education at different forums and conferences. She has also published a number of papers in refereed journals that focus on the motivation of learners and the positive nexus between teaching and research.

Current Projects
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Title: Students motivation, engagement, and assessments

Introduction  

Motivation in both its intrinsic and extrinsic forms can have a key impact on students’ education and the way they approach assessments. Accordingly, my research has focused on how to motivate students to engage with face to face and online activities. This approach has extended to the way assessments are relied on. Therefore, with a colleague, I have considered how the use of self-determination theory may enhance the students’ group work experience. I am currently working on way to improve the use of class participation to make it more relevant to learners through a focus on enhancing competence. 

Theoretical Background 

Martin and Briggs have defined motivation as a ‘hypothetical construct that broadly refers to those internal and external conditions that influence the arousal, direction, and maintenance of behaviour’.1  Motivation is of great importance because, as the research has shown, it influences the manner in which students learn.  The more motivated a student is, the better their results will be.2 Further, when students are motivated, Wlodkowski noted that ‘communication [between learner and lecturer] flows, discipline problem lessen, anxiety [of learners] decreases.’3  

Aims 

The aim of my research is to: 

  • Enhancing the motivation of students 

  • Ensure that assessments are designed in a way that connects with intrinsic as well as intrinsic motivation of learners 

  • Create activities that enhance learners’ competence. 

Progress / Outcomes / Next steps 

Over the years, I have published a number of paper on motivation. Some of my publications are below: 

I am currently working on ways to enhance class participation so students can appreciate its value and not see it as a discretionary mark.