WHO DO THEY THINK THEY ARE? INVESTIGATING THE IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON CASUAL TEACHING STAFF

Casual academics teaching staff, such as tutors and laboratory demonstrators, play a vital role in our undergraduate teaching programs. Indeed, this casual academic workforce often forms the vast majority of the academic teaching staff at most universities, especially in the first-year units/courses. In particular, casual laboratory teaching staff possess several responsibilities such as, ensuring adherence to the health and safety policies, assessing student performance and output, developing undergraduate students' practical and transferable skills, mentoring and correcting misconceptions in theoretical understanding (Herrington & Nakhleh, 2003; Rodriques & Bond-Robinson, 2006). Literature suggests that there is a strong positive correlation between how students interact with their laboratory demonstrator and how these same students rank their interest in (and attitudes towards) their undergraduate science courses (Pentecost et al., 2012; Osbourne, Simon & Collins, 2003). What is unclear however: how do these casual academics perceive their own teaching roles and how does this influence both their own teaching practices and the learning environment experienced by the students? A recent study undertaken by Flaherty et al. (2017) showed the positive impact of psychological empowerment on both the self-efficacy of the teaching staff and its ability to create a more positive, student-centered teaching environment. Preliminary quantitative and qualitative data collected through questionnaires of laboratory teaching staff at Monash University and the University of Sydney have been collected investigating the perceptions of our casual teaching staff (George-Williams, 2019; Spreitzer, 1995; George-Williams, 2020), particularly towards their own teaching roles. The results of these studies will be discussed alongside potential future directions for this study. REFERENCES Flaherty, A., O'Dwyer, A., Mannix-McNamara, P. & Leahy, J. (2017). The influence of psychological empowerment on the enhancement of chemistry laboratory demonstrators' perceived teaching self-image and behaviours as graduate teaching assistants. Journal of Chemistry Education Research and Practice, 18, 710-736. George-Williams, S. R. (2019) Unpublished results, Monash University. George-Williams, S. R. (2020) Unpublished results, The University of Sydney. Herrington D. G. & Nakhleh M. B. (2003). What Defines Effective Chemistry Laboratory Instruction? Teaching Assistant and Student Perspectives. Journal of Chemical Education, 80(10), 1197-1205. Osborne, J., Simon, S., & Collins, S. (2003). Attitudes toward science: A review of the literature and its implications. International Journal of Science Education, 25(9), 1049-1079. Pentecost, T. C., Langdon, L. S., Asirvatham, M., Robus, H., & Parson, R. (2012). Graduate teaching assistant training that fosters student-centered instruction and professional development. Journal of College Science Teaching, 41(6), 68–75. Rodriques R. A. B. & Bond-Robinson J. (2006). Comparing Faculty and Student Perspectives of Graduate Teaching Assistants’ Teaching. Journal of Chemical Education, 83(2), 305-312. Spreitzer, G. M. (1995). Psychological Empowerment in the Workplace: Dimensions, Measurement, and Validation. The Academy of Management Journal, 38(5), 1442-1465

TECHNOLOGICAL SOLUTIONS TO EMPOWER STUDENTS WHO ARE BLIND OR LOW VISION AS INDEPENDENT LEARNERS IN THE CHEMISTRY LABORATORY

In June 1994, representatives of governments and international organisations around the globe ratified the ‘Salamanca Statement on Principles Policy and Practice in Special Needs Education’ (UNESCO, 1994). This rights-based focus on inclusive learning furthered the goals of Education for All (World Conference on Education for All: Meeting Basic Learning Needs, 1990) of providing quality basic education for all children, youths and adults. Today, the importance of inclusion of people with disabilities within education continues to be recognised in the international community and is explicitly mentioned in the targets of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (United Nations). While emerging evidence indicates an increase in the number of students with disabilities enrolling into science, technology, engineering and mathematics, this population is still underrepresented as a result of technological and attitudinal barriers. At the School of Chemistry, at The University of Sydney, we are aiming to build an inclusive learning environment for all. This paper will discuss the advanced technological developments over the last ten years which have helped students who are blind or low vision (BLV) to work independently in the Chemistry laboratory (Devi et al., 2021). This paper will also highlight our future endeavours to further enhance the laboratory learning experience of BLV students. REFERENCES Devi, P., Motion, A., Bhattacharya, J., Supalo, A. C & Schmid, S. (2021) Unpublished results, The University of Sydney. United Nations. Sustainable Development Goals and Disability. Retrieved June 6, 2021 from https://www.un.org/development/desa/disabilities/about-us/sustainable-development-goals-sdgs-and-disability.html. UNESCO (1994). The Salamanca Statement and Framework for Action on Special Needs Education, World Conference on Special Needs Education: Access and Quality, Salamanca, Spain, 7- 10 June. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000098427. World Conference on Education for All: Meeting Basic Learning Needs, (1990). World declaration on education for all and framework for action to meet basic learning needs adopted by the World Conference on Education for All: Meeting Basic Learning Needs, Jomtien, Thailand, 5-9 March 1990. https://bangkok.unesco.org/sites/default/files/assets/ECCE/JomtienDeclaration.pd

Inclusion of students who are blind or low vision in chemistry

In the School of Chemistry of The University of Sydney we aim to build an inclusive culture for all our staff and students. We have embraced changes in the undergraduate curriculum that offer diverse pathways for science students. In first-year chemistry, approximately half of all contact hours are spent in the chemistry laboratory. Laboratory work is particularly challenging for students who are blind or low vision. Historically, these students have worked with laboratory assistants that performed the experiments and informed them of the results and observations. While this allows students to adequately meet the requirements of the degree, it is not a satisfactory arrangement for them and restricts their learning potential in the laboratory. While the number of students with disabilities enrolling into science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) continues to increase, they are still underrepresented as a result of technological and attitudinal barriers. This project aims to empower blind and low vision students to be in command of their own learning, with wide-ranging beneficial effects of improving their self-efficacy, self-confidence, and laboratory skills, and building a highly inclusive learning culture. According to the World Blind Union, there are more than 285,000,000 blind and visionally impaired persons around the world today. In this presentation we will discuss advanced technological developments (Supalo et al., 2016) that will help blind or low vision students to work independently in the Chemistry laboratory (Devi et al., 2023), including the use of commercially available talking scientific data loggers and braille embosser technologies to assist with data collection and analysis tasks. We aim to create a blueprint for other Schools in our own institution and beyond, and lead strategies in inclusive higher education for Australia. We have already mapped out a complete set of experiments that can be adapted, so that students who are blind or have low vision can carry them out independently. This presentation will discuss those experiments and our strategies towards implementing the whole laboratory program. REFERENCES Devi, P., Motion, A.,  Bhattacharya, J., Supalo, A. C., & Schmid, S. (2023) Unpublished results, The University of Sydney. Supalo, C. A., Humphrey, J. R., Mallouk, T. E., Wohlers, H. D., & Carlsen, W. S. (2016). Examining the use of adaptive technologies to increase the hands-on participation of students with blindness or low vision in secondary-school chemistry and physics. Chemistry Education Research and Practice, 17(4), 1174-1189

The experiences of sessional academics in undergraduate science education during the COVID-19 pandemic

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the higher education sector is undeniable. Sessional academics had to adapt to online teaching practices from their traditional teaching practices (e.g., face-to-face laboratories) with little to no training or prior experience. Recent literature describes the anecdotal experiences of individual teaching staff (or teams), such as lack of social interaction and communication (Bartolic et al., 2022; Pather et al., 2020). Sessional academics play a crucial role in the higher education sector, as they are responsible for a majority of face-to-face laboratory teaching and other teaching activities. Due to the sudden transition to online teaching, these casual staff had to learn new software and tools, while isolated in a home environment and often with increased home responsibilities (Bartolic et al., 2022). This project aimed to capture the individual experiences and circumstances of sessional science teaching academics during the pandemic in order to keep a record of what happened and to draw together threads for future online teaching. The study was conducted with the tutors and demonstrators within the faculties of Science at The University of Sydney and Deakin University. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 20 teaching assistants at these institutions located in different states. The states and institutions had different responses to COVID-19, which led to different impacts on the sessional staff. Lack of interaction with students, difficulty in monitoring student engagement, and most importantly, job insecurity, were the main causes of dissatisfaction and anxiety. It was mentioned by some participants that teaching online could provide flexibility in terms of work-life balance, while some stated that it was difficult for them to separate work from personal life due to working from home. Most participants agreed that the level of support they received from the university management and unit coordinators was adequate although the support could have been better.    Interesting findings from the interviews will be highlighted in this presentation alongside proposed future directions to support sessional academics. REFERENCES Bartolic, S. K., Boud, D., Agapito, J., Verpoorten, D., Williams, S., Lutze-Mann, L., Matzat, U., Ma Monica Moreno, M. M., Patsie Polly, P., Tai, J., Marsh, H., L., Lin, L., Burgess, J., Habtu, S., Rodrigo, M. M. M., Roth, M., Heap, T. & Guppy, N. (2022) A multi-institutional assessment of changes in higher education teaching and learning in the face of COVID-19, Educational Review, 74(3), 517-533. Pather, N., Blyth, P., Chapman, J. A., Dayal, M. R., Flack, M. S., Fogg, Q. A., Green, R. A., Hulme, A. K., Johnson, I. P., Meyer, A. J., Morley, J. W., Shortland, P. J., Štrkalj, G., Štrkalj, M., Valter, K., Webb, A. L., Woodley, S. J., & Lazarus, M. D. (2020). Forced Disruption of Anatomy Education in Australia and New Zealand: An Acute Response to the Covid-19 Pandemic. Anatomical Sciences Education, 13(3), 284-30

Evaluating the online teaching experience of University of Sydney staff from 2020-2021: What are the lessons learnt?

This study aimed to address the broad concern of how teaching staff in the higher education sector were impacted during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020/2021. Importantly, we sought to extend this to consider how reflecting on these experiences has informed future practice or plans for innovation. Invited participants completed an online qualitative questionnaire composed of reflective questions. Respondents (14) included members of the research team from the Faculty of Science and Business School, The University of Sydney. Subsequent deductive thematic coding was undertaken with a focus to identify common experiences and challenges raised (Ryan & Bernard, 2003). In this presentation, we will give an overview of the key findings from this study including the challenges and lessons learnt. In this study there was a degree of concern raised about making the transition from face-to-face teaching to online teaching. This was primarily related to increased workload and lack of engagement with online teaching. However, as respondents went through the process of change, they reported feeling more positive and confident about their ability to use EdTech and make changes in a short space of time. The research has demonstrated a strong resilience of staff in adapting to unforeseen changes such as that experienced by all during the pandemic. REFERENCE Ryan, G. W. & Bernard, H. R. (2003). Techniques to identify themes. Field Methods, 15, 85-109

Synthetic Approaches To A Peptide Isostere: Towards New Beta-Lactamase Inhibitors

The effective prevention and treatment of infections caused by microorganisms are increasingly threatened by antimicrobial resistance. b-Lactam antibiotics have been used for many decades to cure bacterial infections. However, the prolonged and widespread use of these drugs has made them less effective against various bacterial strains and raises significant questions about their future usefulness. The most common cause of bacterial resistance to b-lactam antibiotics is expression of b-lactamase enzymes. Extended spectrum b-lactamases (ESBLs) and some other enzymes in this family confer broad spectrum antibiotic resistance to most of the current b-lactams including the third generation, posing serious therapeutic challenges. It is therefore crucial to develop new potent drug candidates as antibacterial agents and broad spectrum b-lactamase inhibitors. Given the structural resemblance of cyclobutanone to the β‐lactam ring system, it was envisioned that the biosynthetic pathway to penicillin might be diverted to deliver cyclobutanone analogues of penicillins in a chemo-enzymatic approach. This would afford a series of analogues in which the classic b-lactam ring is replaced with a cyclobutanone isostere. Previous studies on cyclobutanone analogues of b-lactams have demonstrated b-lactamase inhibitory properties, but comprehensive investigation has been hampered by difficulties in synthesizing biologically relevant motifs. Thus a chemoenzymatic approach is proposed, in which isopenicillin N synthase (IPNS), the key enzyme in penicillin biosynthesis, would be induced to build the cyclobutanone analogue of penicillin. To this end, an analogue of linear tripeptide d-(L-a-aminoadipoyl)-L-cysteinyl-D-valine (ACV) has been designed as a substrate to undergo oxidative cyclization by IPNS to generate the ‘cyclobutanone-penicillin’ framework. Two pathways have been investigated towards the target compound. Pathway A involves a key metathesis step to build a cysteinyl-valine (CV) isostere, which would undergo coupling with a suitably protected L-a-aminoadipic acid to generate the tripeptide analogue. This approach involves synthesis of a vinyl ketone viaa Weinreb amidefrom N­-Boc-S-benzyl-L-cysteine in 4 steps. The vinyl ketone was subjected to cross metathesis with several coupling partners towards an unsaturated derivative of the target CV isostere. The alternative Pathway B utilizes a Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons (HWE) reaction strategy to build a key a,b-unsaturated ketone. Michael addition then introduces the “valinyl” isopropyl group to generate the CV isostere for coupling with L-a-aminoadipic acid. Two variations of this approach have been developed. The first starts with S‐(para‐methoxybenzyl)‐L‐cysteine methyl ester to assemble the enone. Michael addition using an organozinc reagent, gold(III) chloride and designer solvent TPGS (a-tocopherol methoxypolyethylene glycolsuccinate)in aqueous medium afforded a diastereomeric mixture of the CV isostere. The second variation of the HWE route uses an aziridine derived from L-serine methyl ester, from which the HWE reaction afforded an enone. Michael addition followed by ring-opening of the aziridine with a thiol nucleophile yielded the CV isostere as a mixture of diastereomers. Selective N-deprotection of the dipeptide analogue was performed using para-toluenesulfonic acid, followed by coupling to doubly-protected L-a-aminoadipic acid to give the tripeptide isostere in protected from. Deprotection of the final tripeptide isostere was not possible due to time constraints. In a different approach to combating resistant bacteria, a series of cyclam derivatives and related compounds with an amide link has been synthesized. This strategy was inspired by recent results demonstrating that azamacrocycle derivatives of this ilk display promising antibiotic activity against several species of Mycobacteria. A synthetic route to cyclam-based naphthalimideand naphthalene compounds were developed, from di-Boc protected cyclam diacid employing a Staudinger ligation strategy. A similar protocol was utilised to synthesise pyridine-based naphthalimide and naphthalene compounds from pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylic acid. Thus compounds have been investigated, which bear naphthalimide, naphthalene and cyclobutanone groups appended to azamacrocycle cyclam via an amide or click derived triazole linker. Extending this approach, a family of mono- and bis-amides has been synthesized from pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylic acid and picolinic acid. Bioactivity data and structural characterization by single crystal analysis are reported

Synthetic Approaches To A Peptide Isostere: Towards New Beta-Lactamase Inhibitors

The effective prevention and treatment of infections caused by microorganisms are increasingly threatened by antimicrobial resistance. b-Lactam antibiotics have been used for many decades to cure bacterial infections. However, the prolonged and widespread use of these drugs has made them less effective against various bacterial strains and raises significant questions about their future usefulness. The most common cause of bacterial resistance to b-lactam antibiotics is expression of b-lactamase enzymes. Extended spectrum b-lactamases (ESBLs) and some other enzymes in this family confer broad spectrum antibiotic resistance to most of the current b-lactams including the third generation, posing serious therapeutic challenges. It is therefore crucial to develop new potent drug candidates as antibacterial agents and broad spectrum b-lactamase inhibitors. Given the structural resemblance of cyclobutanone to the β‐lactam ring system, it was envisioned that the biosynthetic pathway to penicillin might be diverted to deliver cyclobutanone analogues of penicillins in a chemo-enzymatic approach. This would afford a series of analogues in which the classic b-lactam ring is replaced with a cyclobutanone isostere. Previous studies on cyclobutanone analogues of b-lactams have demonstrated b-lactamase inhibitory properties, but comprehensive investigation has been hampered by difficulties in synthesizing biologically relevant motifs. Thus a chemoenzymatic approach is proposed, in which isopenicillin N synthase (IPNS), the key enzyme in penicillin biosynthesis, would be induced to build the cyclobutanone analogue of penicillin. To this end, an analogue of linear tripeptide d-(L-a-aminoadipoyl)-L-cysteinyl-D-valine (ACV) has been designed as a substrate to undergo oxidative cyclization by IPNS to generate the ‘cyclobutanone-penicillin’ framework. Two pathways have been investigated towards the target compound. Pathway A involves a key metathesis step to build a cysteinyl-valine (CV) isostere, which would undergo coupling with a suitably protected L-a-aminoadipic acid to generate the tripeptide analogue. This approach involves synthesis of a vinyl ketone viaa Weinreb amidefrom N­-Boc-S-benzyl-L-cysteine in 4 steps. The vinyl ketone was subjected to cross metathesis with several coupling partners towards an unsaturated derivative of the target CV isostere. The alternative Pathway B utilizes a Horner-Wadsworth-Emmons (HWE) reaction strategy to build a key a,b-unsaturated ketone. Michael addition then introduces the “valinyl” isopropyl group to generate the CV isostere for coupling with L-a-aminoadipic acid. Two variations of this approach have been developed. The first starts with S‐(para‐methoxybenzyl)‐L‐cysteine methyl ester to assemble the enone. Michael addition using an organozinc reagent, gold(III) chloride and designer solvent TPGS (a-tocopherol methoxypolyethylene glycolsuccinate)in aqueous medium afforded a diastereomeric mixture of the CV isostere. The second variation of the HWE route uses an aziridine derived from L-serine methyl ester, from which the HWE reaction afforded an enone. Michael addition followed by ring-opening of the aziridine with a thiol nucleophile yielded the CV isostere as a mixture of diastereomers. Selective N-deprotection of the dipeptide analogue was performed using para-toluenesulfonic acid, followed by coupling to doubly-protected L-a-aminoadipic acid to give the tripeptide isostere in protected from. Deprotection of the final tripeptide isostere was not possible due to time constraints. In a different approach to combating resistant bacteria, a series of cyclam derivatives and related compounds with an amide link has been synthesized. This strategy was inspired by recent results demonstrating that azamacrocycle derivatives of this ilk display promising antibiotic activity against several species of Mycobacteria. A synthetic route to cyclam-based naphthalimideand naphthalene compounds were developed, from di-Boc protected cyclam diacid employing a Staudinger ligation strategy. A similar protocol was utilised to synthesise pyridine-based naphthalimide and naphthalene compounds from pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylic acid. Thus compounds have been investigated, which bear naphthalimide, naphthalene and cyclobutanone groups appended to azamacrocycle cyclam via an amide or click derived triazole linker. Extending this approach, a family of mono- and bis-amides has been synthesized from pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylic acid and picolinic acid. Bioactivity data and structural characterization by single crystal analysis are reported

Bio-Inspired Nitrile Hydration by Peptidic Ligands Based on L-Cysteine, L-Methionine or L-Penicillamine and Pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylic Acid

Nitrile hydratase (NHase, EC 4.2.1.84) is a metalloenzyme which catalyses the conversion of nitriles to amides. The high efficiency and broad substrate range of NHase have led to the successful application of this enzyme as a biocatalyst in the industrial syntheses of acrylamide and nicotinamide and in the bioremediation of nitrile waste. Crystal structures of both cobalt(III)- and iron(III)-dependent NHases reveal an unusual metal binding motif made up from six sequential amino acids and comprising two amide nitrogens from the peptide backbone and three cysteine-derived sulfur ligands, each at a different oxidation state (thiolate, sulfenate and sulfinate). Based on the active site geometry revealed by these crystal structures, we have designed a series of small-molecule ligands which integrate essential features of the NHase metal binding motif into a readily accessible peptide environment. We report the synthesis of ligands based on a pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylic acid scaffold and L-cysteine, L-S-methylcysteine, L-methionine or L-penicillamine. These ligands have been combined with cobalt(III) and iron(III) and tested as catalysts for biomimetic nitrile hydration. The highest levels of activity are observed with the L-penicillamine ligand which, in combination with cobalt(III), converts acetonitrile to acetamide at 1.25 turnovers and benzonitrile to benzamide at 1.20 turnovers

Synthesis and structural characterisation of amides from picolinic acid and pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylic acid

Coupling picolinic acid (pyridine-2-carboxylic acid) and pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylic acid with N-alkylanilines affords a range of mono- and bis-amides in good to moderate yields. These amides are of interest for potential applications in catalysis, coordination chemistry and molecular devices. The reaction of picolinic acid with thionyl chloride to generate the acid chloride in situ leads not only to the N-alkyl-N-phenylpicolinamides as expected but also the corresponding 4-chloro-N-alkyl-N-phenylpicolinamides in the one pot. The two products are readily separated by column chromatography. Chlorinated products are not observed from the corresponding reactions of pyridine-2,6-dicarboxylic acid. X-Ray crystal structures for six of these compounds are described. These structures reveal a general preference for cis amide geometry in which the aromatic groups (N-phenyl and pyridyl) are cis to each other and the pyridine nitrogen anti to the carbonyl oxygen. Variable temperature (1)H NMR experiments provide a window on amide bond isomerisation in solution