Webinar series 25/26 – Present Day Practicals

Webinar series '25/'26

From November 2025 to February 2026, Present-day Practicals presented its fifth edition – an engaging series of six webinars covering a wide range of topics, all connected to one shared passion: laboratory education.

The webinar series was designed for educators, curriculum designers, and innovators in science education. It offered a space to reflect, connect, and be inspired by new perspectives on the future of lab-based learning.

We’ve chosen to keep this a live-only experience. By not recording the webinars, we aimed to create an open, interactive atmosphere where everyone felt comfortable to share ideas and ask questions freely. Instead of recordings, we have provided short recaps to highlight key insights and takeaways for the community.

Following this webinar series, LabBuddy (one of the Present-day Practicals co-organizers) hosted a dedicated webinar that dove deeper into the educational theory and real-world experiences behind their innovative e-learning tool. Find more information about this webinar here: Enhancing lab education with LabBuddy

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Webinar 1: How do students truly learn in the lab?

We’re all familiar with the phrase that “hands-on” lab work is a great way to learn. This hands-on aspect is often assumed to be the key pedagogical value of laboratory education. But have you ever stopped to think about why?

Speakers:

Hendra Y. Agustian
University of Copenhagen, Denmark

06/11/2025

2:30 pm

Recap

Webinar 2: Extended reality in lab education

We’ve all heard that “practice makes perfect”. But what if you could practice in a completely new way? Imagine being able to master complex lab techniques, explore instruments, and make mistakes safely, all in a virtual space. Could eXtended Reality (XR) be the next step in making lab education more immersive and effective?

Speakers:

Lars de Vreugd
UMC Utrecht, The Netherlands

Karolien Van den Bergh
University Colleges Leuven-Limburg (UCLL), Belgium

20/11/2025

2:00 pm

Recap

Webinar 3: Refocusing labs: from cookbook to open inquiry

We often talk about preparing students for “real research”, yet many lab assignments feel more like recipes than investigations. What if students could take charge of their own experiments – from the first question to the final conclusion?

Speakers:

Forrest Bradbury
Amsterdam University College, The Netherlands

Julia Burzyńska, Noor Schrofer & Eva Steultjens
University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands

02/12/2025

11:00 am

Recap

Webinar 4: Fostering sustainability in lab education

We teach students to handle chemicals with care. But how often do we ask them to care for the planet at the same time? Imagine labs where sustainability isn’t an afterthought, but a core part of scientific learning. What would it take to make our teaching labs greener without losing their educational power?

Speakers:

Marit de Kort
UMC Utrecht, The Netherlands

Gina Washbourn & Cate Cropper
University of Liverpool, United Kingdom

13/01/2026

12:00 pm

Recap

Webinar 5: Artificial intelligence in lab education

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is rapidly finding its way into higher education, but what does it really mean for laboratory teaching? Imagine lab courses where AI supports student learning in different ways, from providing timely feedback on scientific reports to helping educators create bespoke learning tools. Could these uses of AI offer a practical and pedagogically sound way to enhance lab education?

Speakers:

Bake de Rink & Julia Diederen
Wageningen University & Research, The Netherlands

Maurizio Costabile
Adelaide University, Australia

29/01/2026

11:00 am

Recap

Webinar 6: The Student Research Hub Network for Interdisciplinary Challenge-based Education

We want students to work on real-world challenges, but those challenges don’t stop at disciplinary boundaries. Imagine lab education where students from different backgrounds collaborate and jointly develop research solutions. Let’s discover how Student Research Hub Networks make this possible!

Speakers:

Michael Schakelaar
UMC Utrecht, The Netherlands

17/02/2026

10:00 am

Recap