Prof Karl Wirth has been a teacher and researcher at Macalester College for more than 30 years. Trained as a geochemist, he uses chemical data from rocks to understand the origin and evolution of the Earth’s crust and mantle, and to address a wide range of geological questions. As an educator, Karl also investigates metacognition, self- assessment, motivation, and undergraduate research experiences in support of best practices in teaching and learning. He currently co-directs the NSF-funded Keck Geology Consortium REU which seeks to broaden participation in the sciences and to improve undergraduate research experiences through improved mentoring practices. Previously, Karl served as the Associate Director of the Jan Serie Center for Scholarship and Teaching, he was a councilor of the National Association of Geology Teachers, an active contributor to the Science Education Resource Center, and a panelist on metacognition for the Organization for Economic and Cooperative Development (OECD) Center for Curriculum Redesign in Paris. He has also led numerous workshops for institutions and organizations across the US and abroad on topics ranging from metacognition and self-assessment to learning management systems, active learning pedagogies, course design, critical thinking, reflection, and the evaluation of teaching. As a long-term advocate of the oceans, Karl is also a SCUBA instructor, underwater photographer, and coral reef researcher.

Prof Mncedisi Maphalala is a Director: of the Centre for Excellence in Learning and Teaching (CELT) at the Durban University of Technology and a former Dean in the Faculty of Education at the University of Zululand. He holds a D.Ed in curriculum studies from the University of Zululand. His career in Higher Education spans over 17 years as a Research Professor (North-West University), Professor at the University of Zululand and UNISA and Institutional researcher at the University of the Witwatersrand. He has also previously worked for the KZN Department of Education (as a teacher, HOD and Deputy Principal); between May and August 2015, he was a Visiting Scholar at the University of North Dakota (USA). Prof Maphalala is an established researcher who holds an NRF C2 rating. He has edited books and special journal issues and published a number of book chapters and research articles in peer- reviewed journals. Prof Maphalala has presented research papers at various local and international conferences. As a postgraduate supervisor and mentor, Prof Maphalala has supervised to completion several Masters and doctoral candidates. He has conducted a number of large-scale commissioned research projects by external organisations such as the South African Institute of Distance Education (SAIDE), Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC), and Council on Higher Education (CHE). He has served on the Umalusi Research Forum, a sub-committee of the Umalusi Council, for a four-year term. His research interests are teacher education, self- directed learning, blended learning, Scholarship of Teaching & Learning and Curriculum studies.