Dr Emma Buchtel is committed to teaching excellence through the development of integrated learning activities, assessment and feedback strategies that engage undergraduate and postgraduate students and help them to orientate themselves toward university scholarship. Motivated by a desire to increase cross-cultural tolerance and critical thinking skills, Dr Buchtel demonstrates dynamism and versatility in her teaching of psychology. She uses a variety of pedagogical and assessment strategies such as online self-learning activities, and applies research-informed teaching practice in courses on Cultural Psychology. She has successfully introduced on-line cross-cultural interaction between students in Hong Kong and Vancouver, raising their awareness of diversity both between and within their cultures. Dr Buchtel’s commitment to teaching is demonstrated by her sustained excellence in student evaluations, and she is widely esteemed by students for her inspirational teaching, commitment and respect. Dr Buchtel has provided strong leadership in the development of self-learning materials in the Department of Psychological Studies, chiefly in the use of Moodle, and has shared some of her excellent teaching practices in a video and seminars for colleagues at the Institute. She is passionate about the development of educational materials and tools for the avoidance of plagiarism, and reframes plagiarism as an issue of academic self-concept and thinking skills rather than of ethics. She is also involved in collaborative research projects on the cultural factors affecting plagiarism. Dr Buchtel is actively engaged in research projects on the teaching scholarship of online learning, such as an inter-institutional project funded by the UGC on Blended and Online Learning and Teaching, a faculty-level project on Practicing Blended Learning in a Collaborative Platform, and as an ambassador for the “One Course, One Digital Lecture Scheme” of a cross-faculty Teaching Development Grants Project. Her commitment to teaching as scholarship has helped to create an unparalleled learning experience for students and staff that transcends academic degrees and professional qualifications. 

Her outstanding teaching was fully recognised by the Faculty of Education and Human Development, and she was awarded the Faculty Excellence in Teaching Award for the year 2013/14.