Stockholm university
Department of Biology Education

Teachers' Retreat at Hesselby Castle

Teachers from several biology departments gathered at Hesselby Castle for an inspiring retreat focused on teaching development, AI, and pedagogical collaboration. Over two intensive days, the emphasis was on exchanging experiences, exploring new tools, and discussing future development issues in biology education.

On October 20–21, around twenty teachers from the Department of Zoology, MBW, DEEP, and the Stockholm Resilience Centre attended the retreat, organized by the Pedagogical Council of the Biology Section.

Hesselby castle is pink and has two wings, one on each side of the main building.
Photo: Hesselby casle

The purpose of the retreat was to share experiences and gain inspiration for the continued development of teaching. The program included a workshop on test-based learning and the use of AI to create and assess multiple-choice questions, led by Andreas Jemstedt from CeUL, as well as a workshop on feedback and assessment with Katarina Andreasen from the Department of Biological Education at Uppsala University.

John Fitzpatrick, professor at the Department of Zoology, also gave an overview of how the undergraduate biology programs are structured and interconnected, providing participants with a clearer understanding of the overall structure and progression of the programs.

A discussion on the pros and cons of not sharing lecture slides with students sparked lively engagement. The retreat offered both new perspectives and opportunities for informal conversations in a beautiful setting with splendid autumn weather.

The retreat concluded with a joint reflection on future themes and next steps in the section’s pedagogical development work. Through the Pedagogical Council, we continue to create forums for experience-sharing and development, and we look forward to upcoming teacher retreats that will further strengthen collaboration between departments and contribute to the long-term development of our teaching.

Last updated: November 24, 2025

Source: Department of biology education

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