Staff profile

Dr Louise Robinson


Senior Lecturer in Forensic Biology

Louise Robinson in a laboratory working on Molecular Biology Forensic

Subject

Forensic Science

College

College of Science and Engineering

Department

School of Human Sciences

Campus

Kedleston Road, Derby Campus

Email

l.robinson@derby.ac.uk

About

Within the School of Human Science, I teach on the Forensic Science programmes at both undergraduate and masters level. My key teaching area is Molecular Biology with a specialism in Wildlife Crime & Wildlife Forensics. I gained Senior Fellowship in 2018, being an advocate of game-based education within universities. My forensic research interests lie within the areas of species identification and the factors affecting the pupation times of wandering larvae. My pedagogic research interests and within the areas of gamification and more recently, looking at the barriers to D/deaf students entering HE and STEM-related courses.  I gained my undergraduate degree in Forensic Biology from the University of Liverpool and I received a PhD from the University of Chester in the field of Molecular Biology, looking at genetic identification of a critically endangered species.

Teaching responsibilities

My teaching focuses on Molecular Biology content within core Genetics modules as well as Forensic Science applications, especially within the field of Wildlife Forensics. I coordinate the dissertation projects of our undergraduate students and supervise projects in a wide range of subjects at both undergraduate and masters level.

Professional interests

After joining the University of Derby in 2012, I became a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy in 2013 and a Senior Fellow in 2018.  Throughout my time at Derby, I have been eager to identify alternate methods of delivery in both lecture theatres and laboratories, which has seen the use of interactive software, real world learning experiences and gamification.

Research interests

I am eager to collaborate with local authorities and national agencies in order to identify key issues faced by Rural and Wildlife Crime Officers and how they may be overcome. I also have an interest in Forensic Entomology, specifically factors which affect entomological (maggot) growth within an indoor environment and how this may affect estimations of time since death.

My pedagogic interests fall within the area of gamification and how games can be implemented within a teaching environment to improve engagement and retention of material. I have developed a number of in-class exercises and a table top game which are currently used within my teaching.

More recently I have begun exploring the barriers which may prevent D/deaf students from entering university or undertaking certain subjects, such as those which are STEM-focused.

 

Membership of professional bodies

Qualifications

Undergraduate qualification

Research qualification

Recent conferences

Pedagogic events

Wildlife Crime events

In the media

I was involved in the Wildlife and Countryside Link report on the recording of Wildlife Crime, you can find the report at https://www.wcl.org.uk/wildlife.asp 

Recent publications

Turner, I.J. & Robinson, L.A. Game Theory. Laboratory News. (rolling column since 2019) 

Robinson, L.A. (2019). Gamification. In: A Handbook for Teaching and Learning in Higher Education. 5th Edition. Routledge. 

Robinson, L.A. & Turner, I.J. (2019). Table Top Gaming in Wildlife Conservation: Park Life. The Power of Play in Higher Education: Creativity in Tertiary Learning. Palgrave Macmillan. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-95780-7 

Robinson, L.A., Turner, I. J., & Sweet, M. J. (2018). The use of gamification in the teaching of disease epidemics and pandemics. Microbiology Letters, 365, (11), https://doi.org/10.1093/femsle/fny111

Robinson, L. A., Bryson, D., Bulling, M. T., Sparks, N., Wellard, K. S. (2018). Post feeding activity of Lucilia sericata (Diptera: Calliphoridae) on common domestic indoor surfaces and its effect on development. Forensic Science International, 286, 177-184. DOI: 10.1016/j.forsciint.2018.03.010

Robinson, L. A. (2018). Tri-Hard Pipetting: Demonstrating pipetting accuracy using Die Hard with a Vengeance. Journal of Academic Development and Education, 9, 25-32 https://jadekeele.wordpress.com/current-issue/

Robinson, L. (2016). The Application of Games in Higher Education. Journal of Academic Development and Education, 6, 5-8. https://jadekeele.wordpress.com/current-issue/

Robinson, L. A. Genetic Methodologies in Wildlife Investigations (2013) In J. E. Cooper & M. E. Cooper (Eds.), Wildlife Forensic Investigation – Principles and Practice. London, CRC Press.