Festival
Science Education Festival 2026
- Date
- Thursday 16 April 2026
- Time
- Address
- Bèta café - Gorlaeus Building
All teachers aboard the education train!
On April 16th, the Gorlaeus Bèta Café turns into our very own Education Central Station. Connect with colleagues in a relaxed setting and get inspired by engaging keynotes on current topics in our education. Prefer hands-on activities? You can dive right in! With practical toolkits and support from SEEDS, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to work on your own teaching throughout the afternoon. Take a break and challenge your colleagues to a round of Q&A Jenga or Cards Against Teaching in the coffee corner. We’ll wrap up the day with some bites and drinks and some time to share your insights of the day with each other.
Time schedule
- 13:00 Walk-in
- 13:30 Kick-off
- From 14:00
- Keynotes
- Activities
- Games
- 17:00 Drinks
Tracks
During this festival the programme is organised along three tracks. For each track, you can attend a keynote, get inspired and take part in short hands-on activities. You can follow one track all afternoon or change tracks as you like - you determine your own journey.
Click on a track for more information:
Education@Science
Keynote 14:00-14:45: Get Inspired by these Science Teachers' Best Practices
Speakers: Thomas Moerland, Marjo de Graauw, Michiel Brentjens
What do teachers of the year or fellows of the Leiden Teachers' Academy do in their education? These Science teachers are excited to share one of their best practices with you! Sit back and get inspired by recent experiences with the Leiden AI Student Team, effective pre-lab preparation with engaging interactive videolabs and a radio-astronomy-with-paint-cans course. You might walk away with a new idea for your own education!
The entire afternoon you can:
- learn more about local, national and international education prizes and grants and how to apply for them;
- gain an insight into your Science teacher identity;
- discover opportunities abroad for teaching staff;
- get to know the Personal Development Hub and sign up for education workshops at other Dutch universities;
- share your wishes for our future Science education vision;
- go on a quest through the Science Teacher Platform to find the support you need; and
- let us know what you want to read about Education@Science in the faculty newsletter!
Student well-being
Keynote 15.00-15.45: Resilience by design: What can teachers do to support and develop students’ resilience?
Speakers: Sonja Wagenaar & Eva van der Meer
What exactly is resilience and can you train resilience in students? In this keynote your will learn more about the role of you as a teacher in the development and support of students’ resilience and gain practical tips you can implement right away in the design of your course and way of teaching.
The entire afternoon you can:
- step into the shoes of a student and experience your course design from their perspective;
- discover simple but powerful tweaks that boost student well‑being, motivation, and learning success;
- explore how to prepare students for the labour market of today;
- get inspired to support skills development more explicitly within your teaching practice;
- discover how to create an internationally oriented classroom; and
- meet the team behind the Science Student Plaza and learn how their services can support the personal and professional development of your students.
Edu tools & AI
Keynote: 16:00-16:45: Discussion (De-)digitisation in Education
Should we embrace the use of GenAI or move towards more analog education? This ever pressing subject will be discussed by teachers and students. Come and join the conversation!
The entire afternoon you can:
- get first hand experience with Leiden University’s own AI chatbot LUCA;
- share your experience and recommendations about all things AI with the members of the AI taskforce;
- learn more about the do’s and don’t’s in Ans; and
- set up your ideal Brightspace with a puzzle.
