6 Ulster University Research Teaching Nexus Toolkit

Professor Raymond Bond introduces the Ulster University Research–Teaching Nexus (RTN) Toolkit, a resource developed to help academics more deliberately integrate research into their teaching. The toolkit provides prompts, checklists, and examples of activities designed to help staff link their own research with student learning in ways that are both practical and impactful.

Drawing on his personal experiences in the School of Computing, Professor Bond reflects on the importance of making research visible to students. He notes that, as an undergraduate, he was often unaware that lecturers were active researchers, and stresses how important it is for staff to communicate their work and bring students into contact with real-world research questions. Activities in the toolkit range from encouraging students to read and critique published papers, to designing assignments aligned with staff research interests, to giving students opportunities to develop and test their own questions and ideas.

The toolkit was created through funded research, supported by surveys and focus groups with academics. Findings highlighted both the benefits and the missed opportunities in research–teaching integration. Benefits include fostering transferable skills, creating a community of inquiry, and grounding classroom learning in authentic, real-world problems. The toolkit has since been adapted to support programme revalidation and to prompt staff to embed research in their module design.

Professor Bond frames the RTN Toolkit as a way to empower students: by engaging with research early and often, they develop curiosity, independence, and the capacity to tackle sustainability challenges with evidence-based solutions.