| Popis: |
This poster was presented at the eResearch Australasia 2020 virtual conference, 19-23 October 2020. It described the training methodology used by Australian BioCommons, documenting the move to purely online events in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. As part of our mission to help life scientists develop bioinformatics competencies, Australian BioCommons faces challenges relating to Australia’s large size and small, widely-dispersed population. Pre-COVID19, we developed a ‘hybrid’ training method to deliver hands-on bioinformatics workshops to large groups of researchers across the country. The method combined features and benefits of webinar-style delivery from an expert trainer with face-to-face hands-on practical exercises in a classroom setting. Workshops were held concurrently in classrooms at participating sites with trained local researchers acting as facilitators. Since the pandemic has made face-to-face training impossible, we now face different challenges when trying to reach researchers needing our training. When gathering together physically became restricted, we moved our training workshops completely online. In partnership with Pawsey Supercomputing Centre, we augmented the method to utilise ‘breakout rooms’ for personal interactions between small curated groups of trainees with trained facilitators. Despite the delivery of workshops as online presentations, we preserved what makes our training valuable - the provision of hands-on, interactive and tailored learning opportunities. The method has become a key tool for us to ensure scalable and more equitable delivery of short-course bioinformatics training nationally. |
