Associate Professor
Deputy Associate Dean Academic
Overview
My current research is all about finding ways to improve teaching and student learning, with a focus on biology and other sciences. This is a new and exciting direction for me to which I and my group are now dedicated. Of particular interest to me is finding ways to improve communication abilities of science students through the design, testing and implementation of effective curricula, class activities and assessment methods. Naturally, no learning occurs in isolation, so my current research also looks at learning scientific reasoning, information literacy, and how to improve the relevance and authenticity of practical/lab classes and assessment tasks.
Previously my research focussed on using physiological approaches and techniques to address questions in ecology, conservation and aquaculture, especially in vertebrates living in extreme environments (see references for examples). I continue to be involved in biological research through teaching, co-supervision and examination of postgraduate students.
My current projects aim to find effective ways to...
- Improve abilities of first year biology students to work effectively in groups.
- Improve science students’ communication abilities through the development and implementation of a new 3rd year course titled Communicating in Science.
- Improve scientific reasoning and writing in first year biology students.
- Improve tutor support and consequently student learning through implementation of a program of tailored tutor professional development.
- Improve information literacy in first year biology students.
- Motivate students to improve their biological knowledge and use of modern communication technologies by implementing authentic assignments throughout the curriculum e.g., websites, video, blogs.
- Improve the ability of students to articulate the skills and knowledge they develop in undergraduate ecology research through the use of a skills portfolio.
- Improve student practice and confidence in avoiding plagiarism and adhering to academic integrity.
Qualifications
- Graduate Certificate in Higher Education, The University of Queensland
- PhD, The University of Queensland
- Bachelor of Science, UWA
- Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Zoology, The University of Queensland
Publications
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Book Chapter: An introduction to science students and communication in the workplace
Kuchel, Louise and Rowland, Susan (2023). An introduction to science students and communication in the workplace. Teaching science students to communicate: a practical guide. (pp. 1-7) edited by Susan Rowland and Louise Kuchel. Cham, Switzerland: Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-91628-2
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Book Chapter: Getting students to express an opinion
O'Brien, Katherine, Kuchel, Louise and Rowland, Susan (2023). Getting students to express an opinion. Teaching science students to communicate: a practical guide. (pp. 118-128) edited by Susan Rowland and Louise Kuchel. Cham, Switzerland: Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-91628-2_13
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Book Chapter: How to be a functional team member
Rasmussen, Amanda and Kuchel, Louise (2023). How to be a functional team member. Teaching science students to communicate: a practical guide. (pp. 513-519) edited by Susan Rowland and Louise Kuchel. Cham, Switzerland: Springer-Nature. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-91628-2
Grants
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CLIPS: Communication learning in practice for scientists
(2015–2016) Technology-Enhanced Learning Grants
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Community engagement by first year biology students in assessing local biodiversity
(2011–2012) UQ Teaching & Learning Strategic Grants
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(2009–2010) UQ New Staff Start-up Grants (Scholarship of Teaching and Learning)
Publications
Book
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Teaching science students to communicate: a practical guide
Susan Rowland and Louise Kuchel eds. (2023). Teaching science students to communicate: a practical guide. Cham, Switzerland: Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-91628-2
Book Chapter
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An introduction to science students and communication in the workplace
Kuchel, Louise and Rowland, Susan (2023). An introduction to science students and communication in the workplace. Teaching science students to communicate: a practical guide. (pp. 1-7) edited by Susan Rowland and Louise Kuchel. Cham, Switzerland: Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-91628-2
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Getting students to express an opinion
O'Brien, Katherine, Kuchel, Louise and Rowland, Susan (2023). Getting students to express an opinion. Teaching science students to communicate: a practical guide. (pp. 118-128) edited by Susan Rowland and Louise Kuchel. Cham, Switzerland: Springer. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-91628-2_13
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How to be a functional team member
Rasmussen, Amanda and Kuchel, Louise (2023). How to be a functional team member. Teaching science students to communicate: a practical guide. (pp. 513-519) edited by Susan Rowland and Louise Kuchel. Cham, Switzerland: Springer-Nature. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-91628-2
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Learning to write from the way you read
Kuchel, Louise (2023). Learning to write from the way you read. Teaching science students to communicate: a practical guide. (pp. 153-157) edited by Susan Rowland and Louise Kuchel. Cham, Switzerland: Springer-Nature. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-91628-2
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Rhetoric, influence and persuasion
Kuchel, Louise and Rowland, Susan (2023). Rhetoric, influence and persuasion. Teaching science students to communicate: a practical guide. (pp. 11-19) edited by Susan Rowland and Louise Kuchel. Cham, Switzerland: Springer-Nature. doi: 10.1007/978-3-030-91628-2_2
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Kuchel, Louise (2020). Insights for designing science communication training from formal science education: apply the mantra and be explicit. Theory and best practices in science communication training. (pp. 104-121) edited by Todd P. Newman. Abingdon, Oxon, United Kingdom: Routledge. doi: 10.4324/9781351069366-8
Journal Article
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Teaching communication in general science degrees: highly valued but missing the mark
Stevens, Sarah, Mills, Rebecca and Kuchel, Louise (2019). Teaching communication in general science degrees: highly valued but missing the mark. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 44 (8), 1-14. doi: 10.1080/02602938.2019.1578861
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Rowland, Susan, Hardy, James, Colthorpe, Kay, Pedwell, Rhianna and Kuchel, Louise (2018). CLIPS (Communication Learning in Practice for Scientists): a new online resource leverages assessment to help students and academics improve science communication. Journal of Microbiology and Biology Education, 19 (1) 1466. doi: 10.1128/jmbe.v19i1.1466
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Bennet, Dawn, Knight, Elizabeth, Divan, Aysha, Kuchel, Louise, Horn, Jody, van Reyk, David and Burke da Silva, Karen (2017). How do research-intensive research universities portray employability strategies? A review of their websites. Australian Journal of Career Development, 26 (2), 52-61. doi: 10.1177/1038416217714475
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Mercer-Mapstone, Lucy D. and Kuchel, Louise J. (2016). Integrating communication skills into undergraduate science degrees: A practical and evidence-based approach. Teaching and Learning Inquiry, 4 (2), 1-14. doi: 10.20343/teachlearninqu.4.2.11
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Kuchel, Louise, Hergt, Janet and Beames, Stephanie (2016). Welcome to volume 24 number 3. International Journal of Innovation in Science and Mathematics Education, 24 (3), i-iii.
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Mercer-Mapstone, Lucy and Kuchel, Louise (2015). Core skills for effective science communication: a teaching resource for undergraduate science education. International Journal of Science Education, Part B: Communication and Public Engagement, 7 (2), 181-201. doi: 10.1080/21548455.2015.1113573
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Framing renewable energy: a comparative study of newspapers in Australia and Sweden
Djerf-Pierre, Monika, Cokley, John and Kuchel, Louise J. (2015). Framing renewable energy: a comparative study of newspapers in Australia and Sweden. Environmental Communication, 10 (5), 634-655. doi: 10.1080/17524032.2015.1056542
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Teaching scientists to communicate: evidence-based assessment for undergraduate science education
Mercer-Mapstone, Lucy and Kuchel, Louise (2015). Teaching scientists to communicate: evidence-based assessment for undergraduate science education. International Journal of Science Education, 37 (10), 1613-1638. doi: 10.1080/09500693.2015.1045959
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Cameras, competition and creativity: assessing 1st year ecology in the field
Kuchel, Louise, Wilson, Robbie S. and Ellis, William H. (2015). Cameras, competition and creativity: assessing 1st year ecology in the field. International Journal of Innovation in Science and Mathematics Education, 23 (2), 34-45.
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A Documentary video assignment to enhance learning in large first-year science classes
Kuchel, Louise J., Stevens, Sarah K., Wilson, Robbie and Cokley, John (2014). A Documentary video assignment to enhance learning in large first-year science classes. International Journal of Innovation in Science and Mathematics Education, 22 (4), 48-64.
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Metabolic responses of the South American ornate horned frog (Ceratophrys ornata) to estivation
Groom, Derrick J. E., Kuchel, Louise and Richards, Jeffrey G. (2013). Metabolic responses of the South American ornate horned frog (Ceratophrys ornata) to estivation. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology B-Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, 164 (1), 2-9. doi: 10.1016/j.cbpb.2012.08.001
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Regan, Matthew D., Kuchel, Louise J., Huang, Susie S.Y., Higgs, David A., Wang, Joyce, Schulte, Patricia M. and Brauner, Colin J. (2010). The effect of dietary fish oil and poultry fat replacement with canola oil on swimming performance and metabolic response to hypoxia in stream type spring Chinook salmon parr. Aquaculture, 308 (3-4), 183-189. doi: 10.1016/j.aquaculture.2010.08.014
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The cold shoulder: free-ranging snowshoe hares maintain a low cost of living in cold climates
Sheriff, Michael, J., Speakman, J.R., Kuchel, L., Boutin, S. and Humphries, M.M. (2009). The cold shoulder: free-ranging snowshoe hares maintain a low cost of living in cold climates. Canadian Journal of Zoology, 87 (10), 956-964. doi: 10.1139/Z09-087
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Sheriff, Michael, J., Kuchel, Louise, Boutin, Stan and Humphries, Murray M. (2009). Seasonal metabolic acclimatization in a northern population of free-ranging snowshoe hares, Lepus americanus. Journal of Mammalogy, 90 (3), 761-767. doi: 10.1644/08-MAMM-A-247R.1
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Hanson, Linda, M., Baker, Daniel, W., Kuchel, Louise, Farerell, Anthony P., Val, Adalberto L. and Brauner, Colin J. (2009). Intrinsic mechanical properties of the perfused armoured catfish heart with special reference to the effects of hypercapnic acidosis on maximum cardiac performance. Journal of Experimental Biology, 212 (9), 1270-1276. doi: 10.1242/jeb.022764
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Wagner, G. N., Kuchel, L. J., Lotto, A., Patterson, D. A., Shrimpton, J. M., Hinch, S. G. and Farrell, A. P. (2006). Routine and Active Metabolic Rates of Migrating Adult Wild Sockeye Salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka Walbaum) in Seawater and Freshwater. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology, 79 (1), 100-108. doi: 10.1086/498186
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Wagner, G. N., Hinch, S. G., Kuchel, L. J., Lotto, A., Jones, S. R. M., Patterson, D. A., Macdonald, J. S., Van der Kraak, G., Shrimpton, M., English, K. K., Larsson, S., Cooke, S. J., Healy, M. C. and Farrell, A. P. (2005). Metabolic rates and swimming performance of adult Fraser River sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) after a controlled infection with Parvicapsula minibicornis. Canadian Journal of Fisheries And Aquatic Sciences, 62 (9), 2124-2133. doi: 10.1139/F05-126
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Biotelemetry: a mechanistic approach to ecology
Cooke, S. J., Hinch, S. G., Wikelski, M., Andrews, R. D., Kuchel, L. J., Wolcott, T. G. and Butler, P. J. (2004). Biotelemetry: a mechanistic approach to ecology. Trends In Ecology & Evolution, 19 (6), 334-343. doi: 10.1016/j.tree.2004.04.003
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Wilson, R. S., Kuchel, L. J., Franklin, C. E. and Davison, W. (2002). Turning up the heat on subzero fish: thermal dependence of sustained swimming in an Antarctic notothenioid. Journal of Thermal Biology, 27 (5), 381-386. doi: 10.1016/S0306-4565(02)00006-2
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Kuchel, L. J. and Franklin, C. E. (2000). Morphology of the cloaca in the estuarine crocodile, Crocodylus porosus, and its plastic response to salinity. Journal of Morphology, 245 (2), 168-176. doi: 10.1002/1097-4687(200008)245:2<168::AID-JMOR7>3.0.CO;2-1
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Kuchel, LJ and Franklin, CE (1998). Kidney and cloaca function in the estuarine crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) at different salinities: Evidence for solute-linked water uptake. Comparative Biochemistry And Physiology A-molecular And Integrative Physiology, 119 (3), 825-831. doi: 10.1016/S1095-6433(98)01022-8
Conference Publication
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Is it worth taking time out of first year science courses to explicitly teach team skills?
Rasmussen, Amanda, Rossini, Renee and Kuchel, Louise (2011). Is it worth taking time out of first year science courses to explicitly teach team skills?. 34th HERDSA Annual International Conference, Gold Coast, QLD Australia, 4-7 July 2011. Milperra, NSW Australia: Higher Education Research and Development Society of Australasia.
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Brauner, C. J., Baker, D., Hanson, L., Kuchel, L., Jackson, D., Farrell, A. P. and Val, V. L. (2007). Acid–base regulation during hypercapnia, exercise and anoxia in the armoured catfish, Liposarcus pardalis. Seventh International Congress of Comparative Physiology and Biochemistry, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil, August 12–16, 2007. New York: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2007.06.102
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Regan, M., Kuchel, L., Rummer, J., Machala, A., Grant, A., Schulte, P., Brauner, C., Balfry, S., Higgs, D. and Devlin, R. H. (2006). Effects of dietary lipid substitution on swimming performance during the early developmental stages of Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha). Annual Main Meeting of the Society for Experimental Biology, University of Kent at Canterbury, UK, 2-7 April, 2006. New York: Elsevier. doi: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2006.01.039
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Kuchel, L. and Franklin, C. E. (2001). Osmoregulatory plasticity in a crocodile: The physiological and morphological responses of the estuarine crocodile, Crocodylus porosus, acclimated to fresh and salt water. Crocodilian Biology and Evolution, The University of Queensland, 8-10 July, 1998. Chipping North, NSW Australia: Surrey Beatty and Sons.
Other Outputs
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In Australia, green wine is good
Cokley, John D. and Kuchel, Louise (2009, 09 16). In Australia, green wine is good Global Post
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Kuchel, Louise J. (2003). The energetics and patterns of torpor in free ranging Tachygiossus aculeatus from a warm-temperate climate. PhD Thesis, School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland. doi: 10.14264/106239
Grants (Administered at UQ)
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CLIPS: Communication learning in practice for scientists
(2015–2016) Technology-Enhanced Learning Grants
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Community engagement by first year biology students in assessing local biodiversity
(2011–2012) UQ Teaching & Learning Strategic Grants
-
(2009–2010) UQ New Staff Start-up Grants (Scholarship of Teaching and Learning)
