"Teaching is more than just filling students with knowledge: it's about sparking their interest and inspiring them."
Dr Gregor Campbell, Department of Cell & Developmental Biology
PAST WINNERS
QUICK LINKS
- Institutional Learning and Teaching Strategy 2010-2015
- UCL Manifesto for Teaching and Learning
- Personal tutors handbook: Guidance and information
- Academic manual: Compendium of key documents for staff
- Key Skills: Online advice for staff and students
More about the 2009 winners
Beginning of career
Dr Liam Graham, Economics
Dr Graham has been active in developing a range of techniques to
ensure that large group lectures on macroeconomics hold the attention
of the full cohort of students, including through handouts, competitions
and by relating classroom theory to current economic preocuupations
(including through reference to historical precedents and the provision
of reading material from that week’s newspapers). As a result,
his course evaluation scores have been exceptionally high. He also
regularly solicits student feedback and devotes time at the end
of his lectures to his responses to these comments.
Dr Richard Mole, SSEES
Dr Mole has played a key role in the development of international
and interdisciplinary learning across SSEES; specifically in
the design and delivery of the International MA In Economy, State
and Society (IMESS), which offers students the choice of three
pathways: Economics & Business, Politics and Security and
Nation, History and Society. The MA is recognised by the EU Erasmus
Mundus Programme, making UCL the only Russell Group university
to have received such recognition. Dr Mole has also been instrumental
in the development of courses to promote the acquisition of interdisciplinary
knowledge and study skills for SSEES postgraduates, and in using
venues across London – including the Baltic collection
of the British Library and the Latvian Embassy – to support
students’ learning.
Dr Rodney Reynolds, Anthropology
Dr Reynolds has led the establishment of the Network for Student
Activism – a web-based teaching and learning tool that
has been developed for UCL’s first Applied Studies course
(based in UCL Anthropology). Through the network, undergraduate
and postgraduate students draft essays in response to a research
question, then publish them online via a wiki for peer scrutiny
and discussion. The student ‘hosts’ the discussion
of his / her research question, and draws on the comments to
revise their original essay at the end of the term. Students
from the medical anthropology at the University of Ljubljana
in Slovenia join their UCL counterparts in this online activity.
Experienced academic staff
Dr Sandra Dunsmuir, Clinical, Educational and Health Psychology
Dr Dunsmuir has led a number of projects – particularly in
the field of new media – which have contributed significantly
to the development of teaching and learning in her field, both
within UCL and at a national and international level. Her work
on the development of the Psychological Testing in Education Virtual
Learning Environment (multimedia resources to support the educational
psychology postgraduate curriculum) has led to increased access
for students to a range of assessment tools; enhanced efficiency
in administration, marking and feedback; and the development of
tailored support for students in areas of individual need.
Dr Mark Huckvale, Speech, Hearing and Phonetic Sciences
Dr Huckvale has transformed laboratory teaching in speech and hearing
sciences at UCL through the development of purpose-built software
tools for audio acquisition, display and analysis (incorporating
a range of interactive exercises for students). He has also been
an active member of the speech and hearing sciences academic
community, including through outreach and involvement with European-wide
education initiatives. He has also developed a curriculum which
makes the mathematical and physical science elements of speech
science accessible to students with non-mathematical backgrounds.
Professor Roger Matthews, Institute of Archaeology
Professor Matthews has made a significant contribution to teaching
in archaeology at UCL, through a comprehensive range of activity
which includes: a restructuring of the entire undergraduate programme
of courses in Near Eastern archaeology (to enhance progression
from first to third year studies); early engagement with the
potential of Moodle and the
UCL Virtual
Learning Environment; the development of alternative methods
of assessment (including online assessment) and work to enhance
the skills training aspect of the research student experience.
Most recently, he has established a new degree for the department – the
BA Archaeology with a Year Abroad – and has set up a number
of bilateral student exchanges to support the programme with
universities in the US, Canada, Australia and elsewhere.
Dr David Rowley, Chemistry
Dr Rowley’s teaching is rated exceptionally highly by his
students, reflecting his willingness to use a wide variety of teaching,
assessment and enabling methods. Among his innovations include
the use of ‘tablet PCs’ to deliver lectures; the production
of ‘movies’ of common chemical derivations, the development
of courses which focus on identifying and remedying skills gaps
in first-year chemists, and the use of reading week to incorporate
skills-based activities into undergraduate programmes. He is committed
to outreach activity and works across the year with local school
students, teachers and science societies to promote chemistry as
a degree subject and as a career.
Dr Jakob Stougaard-Nielsen, Scandinavian Studies
Dr Stougaard-Nielsen has been instrumental in bringing about genuine
programme innovation and cohesion in Scandinavian Studies and on
UCL’s BA Language and Culture programme. Among his recent
achievements are the establishment of synchronous seminars between
students in London and in Aarhus, incorporating work with blogs,
wikis and other new technologies into course design and using Moodle
as a virtual seminar room to regularly bring together BA Language
and Culture students, including a way of maintaining community
during the compulsory year abroad.
Postgraduate teaching assistants
Ms Rosemary Coates, Chemistry
Rosemary has made a sizeable contribution to the physical and inorganic
Chemistry lab courses, particularly through her work to improve
the feedback received by students by introducing and monitoring
robust processes to facilitate this, and through her collaboration
with colleagues on the design and development of pre- and post-lab
e-learning materials. She has also been actively involved in
the Chemistry Outreach programme, jointly initiating a programme
to bring postgraduate students in chemistry to give talks and
demonstrations in local schools.
Dr Daniel Laqua, History
Dr Laqua was nominated by his Head of Department for his work as
Writing and Learning Mentor in the History department from 2007-9.
In this role, he invested a considerable amount of time and effort
to respond to student needs; to be proactive in promoting and carrying
out this role, and to work with academic staff to integrate the
training he had developed into the first year History core course.
He has also been active in co-ordinating the activities of his
fellow Teaching Assistants, and in changing student’s perceptions
about the value of the Writing and Learning Scheme, which is now
seen as a source of valuable advice and help for everyone, not
just those with difficulties with academic writing.
Supporting learning
Mr Nick Mann, Geography
In addition to his everyday duties as departmental learning resources
co-ordinator, Nick has masterminded a number of projects which
have significantly enhanced the Geography department’s
teaching provision. These include: work to digitise the department’s
extensive collection of maps; the creation of an Online Learning
Centre (an innovative resource which provides a venue for class-based
work with online and software resources not otherwise available
within UCL) and the management of the migration of 125 Geography
modules onto Moodle. All of his activities contribute to the
development of a strong learning community, and provide outstanding
support to facilitate the department’s teaching.
Page last modified on 08 jun 11 10:00
Tell us about the inspiring teaching and learning taking place in your department: email ele.cooper@ucl.ac.uk or call 020 7679 5992 (internal extension 45992).
