Matt Bower is an associate professor in the Department of Educational Studies at Macquarie University, who specialises in the innovative use of technology for learning purposes. He is particularly interested in how contemporary technologies such as augmented reality, Web 2.0 tools, virtual worlds, social networking, virtual reality and so on can be most effectively used to support cognitive development and collaborative learning. Matt has over seventy peer reviewed publications in the area of technology-enhanced learning design, teacher education, and computing education. He has led several funded grant projects and participated in many other research initiatives (total funding exceeds $1M). He has delivered numerous keynote and invited speaker presentations on topics such as augmented reality, blended-synchronous learning and learning design.  

Matt is a passionate educator who leads the “ICT and Education”, “Digital Technologies and Creativity” and “Learning Technologies in Practice” subjects at Macquarie University. He has been awarded an Australian Office for Learning and Teaching Citation Award for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning as well as the Dean’s Award for Teaching Excellence and Vice Chancellor’s Award for Teaching Excellence. His teaching strongly emphasises the importance of adopting a research-driven approach in education. He is the lead author of two A1 research books “Blended synchronous learning - A handbook for educators” and “Design of technology-enhanced learning - integrating research and practice” which aim to directly support educators worldwide to infuse research into their teaching.