Ako Te Herenga Waka Ako Victoria Symposium

Ako Victoria Symposium is a one-day learning and teaching event open to all staff. It's hosted annually by the University’s Centre for Academic Development.

Ako Victoria Symposium events bring Victoria University of Wellington staff together to talk about learning and teaching, and celebrate successes in the field. They also give staff the opportunity to:

• meet with other academics, managers, and support staff committed to improving learning and teaching
• share the outcomes of new learning and teaching research
• share innovations in digital learning and teaching
• highlight good practice in learning and teaching.

Ako Victoria Symposium

Ako Victoria Symposium celebrates learning and teaching at Te Herenga Waka—Victoria University of Wellington in a day-long event where exciting and interesting presentations stimulate and inspire us to greater heights.

Our 2025 Ako Victoria Symposium will be held on Thursday 3 July, with a theme of “Tāraia te Mahara: shaping the future of teaching and learning together”. The day will be a mix of short, ten-minute presentations and opportunities for discussion.

Leaders, managers, academic and professional staff are invited to come together to share success stories about initiatives with meaningful impacts on learning and teaching. This is an opportunity to showcase innovative, effective, or developing practices that create inclusive, engaging, and supportive learning environments.

Registrations are open for both participants and presenters. Register by 9 am, Monday 30 June 2025, for catering purposes. Lunch and light refreshments will be provided.

Register for the symposium

2025 Ako Victoria Symposium schedule

The 2025 symposium is on Thursday 3 July, from 9.30 am.

Discussions include:

• David Cox: The performative aspect of teaching
• Jelena Rukavina Vuckovic: Inclusive spaces & other gems
• Dr Frankie Fong: Violation of expectation: introducing different learning experiences that stimulate intellectual exchange
• Dr Linda Hogg, Tessa Jacobsen-Grocott and Sara Warnock: Reframing mandatory attendance as a scaffold for school leavers
• Associate Professor Mark Bennett: Rethinking tutorials
• Dr Bonnie Etherington: Teaching digital reading strategies in digital Oceania
• Panel Discussion 1—Our values and L&T
• Julia Martin: Girls* on Ice Aotearoa
• Elizabeth Craker and Associate Professor Kate Thornton: Micro-credentials as a tool for capability building
• Associate Professor Amanda Wolf: Master's capstone: conference on "thinking" and "doing" in policy work
• Dr Alex Beattie: Disconnecting in the lecture theatre
• Panel Discussion 2—How AI is reshaping learning and teaching.

• pdf218.0KB2025 Ako Victoria Symposium schedule