Team

Associate Professor Tamas Makany

Director

Tamas is the Associate Provost (Teaching & Learning Innovation) and Director of the Centre for Teaching Excellence (CTE). He leads the team in developing and delivering faculty development, promoting pedagogical innovations, and conducting educational research & technology projects.

Tamas teaches design communication courses in the Lee Kong Chian School of Business as Associate Professor of Communication Management (Education).  He holds a Ph.D. in cognitive psychology from the University of Southampton, UK, and completed postdoctoral work at Stanford on educational technology for underserved communities. As a former Silicon Valley design researcher with Netflix, Microsoft, and educational gaming startups, his current academic research focuses on generative AI in education. He received SMU’s Most Promising Teacher Award in 2023 and was nominated for the Innovative Teacher Award in 2021.

Yeo Wee Loon

Senior Assistant Director

For queries on faculty professional development programme, peer coaching, Graduate Instructor Foundation in Teaching, and support on interactive learning pedagogy, please contact Wee Loon.

Having worked in the education sector for more than a decade, Wee Loon had the privilege of engaging with diverse groups of learners ranging from International Baccalaureate students to Polytechnic students to Undergraduates. He also conducted courses on assessment for adult learners. Prior to joining SMU, he oversaw career preparation initiatives for Postgraduate students. Wee Loon graduated with a PhD in Anthropology and Sociology from the University of Western Australia.

Ashlynn Binte MAHADI

Assistant Manager

Ashlynn has over five years of experience in the education sector from overseeing partnerships with overseas partner universities to student development. Prior to SMU, Ashlynn managed the outreach efforts and student activities at an IHL. Ashlynn graduated from the National University of Singapore with a Bachelor of Social Sciences (Honours) in Economics.

Melissa Lim

Assistant Manager

Prior to joining SMU, Melissa managed the administrative functions and provided business support in a University research institute. She has experience in HR, procurement and events management. Melissa graduated from the Nanyang Technological University with a Bachelor of Business.

Magdeleine Lew

Associate Director

For support on course design, assessment practices, experiential learning and educational research, please contact Magdeleine. Magdeleine also provides pedagogical insights to conceptualise CTE's initiatives, and is the key person driving the efforts to advance SMU’s Scholarship of Teaching and Learning and Educational Research.

Magdeleine has over a decade of experience as a problem-based learning (PBL) practitioner. She is also an experienced trainer, having conducted many Continuing Education and Training programmes for adult learners (both locally and overseas) in areas relating to classroom facilitation and student assessment in PBL. Magdeleine holds a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology from the Erasmus University, Rotterdam, the Netherlands. Her research interest is in the area of student self-assessment and learning.

Neo Wei Leng

Senior Manager

For support on educational research, programme evaluation, MOE-related grant writing, and evaluation of Technology-Enhanced Learning (TEL) resources offered by the CTE, please contact Wei Leng.

Wei Leng is an experienced educational researcher and she supports the Centre’s efforts in promoting scholarly teaching and learning initiatives in SMU. Her research interests include learning theories, game-based learning and educational innovations. Prior to joining SMU, Wei Leng worked in various research teams within National Institute of Education, where she developed strong expertise in various stages of research cycles that include Institutional Research Board application, project management, research design and implementation, publication of findings and conference presentations. Wei Leng graduated with a Master of Education (Learning Sciences & Technology) and a Bachelor of Business degree from Nanyang Technological University.

Titus Quek

Research Fellow

For support on literature review, psychometric scale development and validation, data collection and analyses, and collaborations on external research grants, please contact Titus. As a research fellow, Titus supports the CTE in its pedagogical initiatives, leveraging on his training and competencies to provide an evidence-based approach towards educational research.

Titus' research interests mainly revolve around the application of Self-determination Theory and interpersonal communication frameworks towards the fields of student learning, motivation and academic goal achievement. He is also well-versed in psychometric scale construction and validation, as well as the use of Structural Equation Modelling. Titus graduated with a Ph.D. in Social Psychology and a Bachelor of Social Sciences (Psychology), both from the National University of Singapore.

James Foo

Senior Associate Director

For support on using technology to blend face-to-face learning with online learning, please contact James.

James is passionate in innovating teaching and learning through learner-centred and collaborative pedagogies and he supports faculty through providing one-one/group consultations, conducting workshops and facilitation of communities of practice. James graduated from the Nanyang Technological University with a Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) degree and a Master of Education (Learning Sciences & Technology). He has also obtained a Postgraduate Diploma in Education from the National Institute of Education and completed his Management and Leadership in Education course.

Wayne Chiu Wee Meng

Assistant Director, Blended Learning

For support on blended learning, please contact Wayne.

Wayne supports faculty members in providing consultations on blended learning and online learning instructional strategies and methods.

Wayne has always been passionate in using technology with instructional strategies to meet the learning needs of learners. He enjoys working closely with a diverse level of academic staff in infusing education technology to bring about effective instructions and learning. He graduated with Master of Arts (Instructional Design & Technology) at the National Institute of Education and a Bachelor in Computing degree at Monash University.

Ivy Seow

Senior Manager, Learning Design and Communications

For support on Blended Learning, please contact Ivy.

Ivy supports faculty in the process of exploring blended course design possibilities and developing impactful learning experiences through appropriate technological leverage.

She has over ten years of experience in the field of education, from teaching language in secondary school to managing leadership development and coaching projects in the organisational L&D space. Prior to joining SMU she worked on instructional design for defense projects and was a learning experience designer with an international publisher for digital courses in higher education. Ivy graduated from the National Institute of Education with a Post-graduate Diploma in Education and from the National University of Singapore with a Bachelor of Arts.

Divya Patteri

Learning Designer, Blended Learning

Divya supports instructors in the development of Blended Learning (BL) courses with the help of relevant learning design frameworks grounded in research.

She has over eight years of experience in the education sector working with schools, universities, and e-learning organisations in India, Singapore, Australia, the US, and the UK. She is passionate about data and believes that insights from data can help us make better decisions. Prior to joining SMU, she designed self-directed, bootcamp-styled programmes for universities and leading tech companies.

Divya graduated from Nanyang Technological University with a master’s degree in Curriculum and Teaching. She also holds certifications for teaching and learning from the Cambridge International Education as well as for course design quality from Quality Matters (QM).

Kazae Quek

Senior Learning Technologist, Blended Learning

Kazae has more than ten years of experience as a graphics designer and in administration management. He enjoys meeting people and is always excited with new ideas. Graduated in the field of Digital Media, Kazae is a creative person who is interested in sports and games

Zhang Wan Zhen

Learning Technologist, Blended Learning

For support and advice on the creation of digital learning content for blended learning, please contact Wan Zhen.

Wan Zhen has many years of experience as a Media Producer in both corporate and education sectors. She enjoys transforming ideas to multimedia. She is also passionate in exploring and sharing new ideas on education technology tools.

Bernie Koh

Assistant Director

For support on developing innovative technology enhanced learning applications (including games, simulation and virtual reality) for teaching and learning please contact Bernie.

Bernie is interested in multimedia and gaming design. Prior to joining SMU, Bernie worked in Private Education Institutes, providing training in the English language and multimedia applications. Bernie graduated from the National Institute of Education, Singapore, with a Masters of Education and from the University of Canberra with a Bachelor of Communication (Multimedia Production).

Isaac Koh

Lead, Pedagogical Innovations

For matters regarding AI governance and implementation of AI in teaching and learning, please contact Isaac.

Prior to joining SMU, Isaac worked with a non-profit as an educator and trainer. Isaac graduated from the National University of Singapore with a Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) degree.