We chat with Associate Professor Matt Bower from the Department of Educational Studies about how he inspires future generations of teachers and his love of surfing.

Work stuff
I’ve been at Macquarie for…
27 years since undergrad, 24 years since commencing casual tutoring, 10 years in my current role – am I really that old now?!

In a nutshell, my job is to…
Inspire future generations of teachers to successfully integrate technology into their classrooms and conduct the research that helps them to do so effectively.

The question I hear most often in my work is…
Can I have an extension?

The top three things on my to-do list today are…
1) Get down to Melbourne for the eExams symposium.
2) Finish that blasted computing education theory paper.
3) Respond to this ‘60 seconds’ questionnaire

If I could do any other job at Macquarie (with instant qualifications/knowledge) it would be…
Why DVC, of course.

A Macquarie staff member who impressed me last week…
Equal tie Professor Mary Ryan and Associate Professor Sheila Degotardi – they head up the Department of Educational Studies and our department research portfolio (respectively) – I’m constantly amazed by how they do it all and still manage their own enormous research programs.

I get my campus coffee fix from…
MUSE cart.

If you were given $50 million to create or build something at Macquarie, what would you do with it?
Build the Macquarie Learning Technology Research Centre.

Personal life
Outside work you’ll find me…
Surfing Maroubra. 

The most amazing place I’ve ever visited is…
Nepal in the 90’s.

If I could have dinner with anyone (living or dead) it would be…
Albert Einstein.

The last great movie I saw was…
Crazy Stupid Love on Netflix, trashy but funny.

In 10 years from now, I hope to be…
Healthy and happy.

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Matt Bower’s book Design of Technology-Enhanced Learning is the winner of the Association for Educational Communications and Technology’s 2018 Design and Development Outstanding Book Award.