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UniSA Awards for Teaching Excellence

The UniSA Awards for Teaching Excellence give recognition to teachers (individuals and teams) renowned for the excellence of their teaching, who have outstanding presentation skills and who have made a broad and deep contribution to enhancing the quality of learning and teaching at the University of South Australia.

Up to three Awards for Teaching Excellence will be made annually. Winners will each receive $5000 and a certificate.

• Categories
• Eligibility
• Nominations
• Selection criteria
• Essential documentation

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Categories

There are four categories of UniSA Awards for Teaching Excellence:

1. Division based;
2. Indigenous Education;
3. Early Career; and
4. Work-integrated learning.

This should be interpreted broadly and includes situated learning, practicum, clinical education, work placement and cooperative education.

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Eligibility

• Nomination is open to all staff with teaching or teaching/research appointments (full-time or fractional; continuing or fixed-term contract).
• Teams may be nominated provided that at least one member of the team fulfils this criterion.
• Teams may be of any size.
• Nominees, whether as a team or individuals, may not apply concurrently for the Awards for Teaching Excellence and another UniSA Teaching Award.
• The Indigenous Education category is open to Indigenous and non-Indigenous academic staff. Nominees must demonstrate their contribution to Indigenous education, which may include: the teaching of Indigenous students as a cohort; and/or the teaching of Indigenous courses or units; and/or the embedding of Indigenous perspectives within a course or program.
• The Early Career category is open to staff with no more than seven years of experience teaching in a higher education setting.
• Winners of the Award for Teaching Excellence are eligible for renomination for the Awards for Teaching Excellence in later years, only if they can demonstrate significantly different achievements in later years.
• Unsuccessful nominees for the Awards for Teaching Excellence are eligible for renomination in later years.

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Nominations

Nominations are made through the Deans: Teaching and Learning. The Deans may use a number of strategies to identify prospective candidates. Support for the nomination from the respective Head of School (or equivalent) will be confirmed prior to notifying staff of their nomination and confirming their acceptance.

Nominations are made either of individual staff members or of teams. Nomination as part of a team does not qualify a staff member to apply for an individual award. Staff members who wish to apply individually for awards must first be nominated on an individual basis. Staff members are encouraged to advise their Divisional Dean: Teaching and Learning of their own interest in the awards scheme or to identify colleagues as prospective nominees.

A Nomination form is available (Word 28kb - opens in new window) UniSA staff access only. Nominees normally will remain in the pool of nominees for a period of up to three years.

Nomination for the UniSA awards will provide candidates with University support should they wish to proceed to the ALTC awards, subject to the condition that they first secure a competitive UniSA teaching award. The University is committed over the three year nomination period to assist nominees achieve success in the UniSA awards scheme and to help them prepare for the national ALTC (formerly Carrick Institute) awards. At the conclusion of their three year period, nominees will need to be renominated by their Divisional Dean: Teaching and Learning if they are to continue in the awards process. Similarly, nominees who withdraw from the pool of nominees during their three year period of nomination will need to be renominated by their Divisional Dean: Teaching and Learning in order to re-enter the awards programs.

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Selection criteria

All nominees for Awards for Teaching Excellence will be assessed on evidence they provide in relation to the following five criteria.

1. Approaches to teaching that influence, motivate and inspire students to learn
   Which may include: fostering student development by stimulating curiosity and independence in learning; contributing to the development of students’ critical thinking skills, analytical skills and scholarly values; encouraging student engagement through the enthusiasm shown for learning and teaching; inspiring and motivating students through high-level communication, presentation and interpersonal skills.
2. Development of curricula and resources that reflect a command of the field
   Which may include: developing and presenting coherent and imaginative resources for student learning; implementing research-led approaches to learning and teaching; demonstrating up-to-date knowledge of the field of study in the design of the curriculum and the creation of resources for learning; communicating clear objectives and expectations for student learning.
3. Approaches to assessment and feedback that foster independent learning
   Which may include: integrating assessment strategies with the specific aims and objectives for student learning; providing timely, worthwhile feedback to students on their learning; using a variety of assessment and feedback strategies; implementing both formative and summative assessment; adapting assessment methods to different contexts and diverse student needs.
4. Respect and support for the development of students as individuals
   Which may include: participating in the effective and empathetic guidance and advising of students; assisting students from equity and other demographic subgroups to participate and achieve success in their courses; influencing the overall academic, social and cultural experience of higher education.
5. Scholarly activities that have influenced and enhanced learning and teaching
   Which may include: showing advanced skills in evaluation and reflective practice; participating in and contributing to professional activities related to learning and teaching; coordination, management and leadership of courses and student learning; conducting and publishing research related to teaching; demonstrating leadership through activities that have broad influence on the profession.

In assessing nominations against the five selection criteria, the Grants and Awards Selection Panel will take into account:

• the extent to which the claims for excellence are supported by formal and informal evaluation;
• the extent of creativity, imagination or innovation, irrespective of whether the approach involves traditional learning environments or technology-based developments; and
• the information contained in Student Evaluations of Teaching (SETs) and Course Evaluation Instruments (CEIs) and the references submitted by the nominee.

The Selection Panel may contact nominees and/or referees for clarification or further information.

The five selection criteria will be given equal consideration by the Selection Panel. Nominees in the Indigenous Education category must demonstrate their contribution to Indigenous education. In assessing nominations in the Early Career category against criterion 5 the Selection Panel will take into consideration the career stage of the nominees.

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Essential documentation

The following items, in support of the nomination, must be submitted (original and electronic copy) no later than 4.00pm, Friday 2 September 2011: 

Cover sheet

UniSA Awards for Teaching Excellence Cover sheet for application (Word 30kb - opens in a new window)

Written statement

The core element of a nomination for an Award for Teaching Excellence is a written statement in which nominees describe their teaching activities and achievements, and specifically address each of the five selection criteria. The written statement should be presented under the following six headings, in order:

1. Overview
2. Approaches to teaching that influence, motivate and inspire students to learn
3. Development of curricula and resources that reflect a command of the field
4. Approaches to assessment and feedback that foster independent learning
5. Respect and support for the development of students as individuals
6. Scholarly activities that have influenced and enhanced learning and teaching

The overview provides the opportunity for nominees to commence the written statement with a focus on the specific character of their teaching and achievements. It is recommended that the overview be no more than one page and that it include the nominees’ educational philosophy and beliefs, a description of the teaching context and an integrated summary of the claims relating to the selection criteria. The majority of the written statement should be devoted to addressing each of the five criteria in turn. Nominees must provide evidence in support of their claims against these criteria.

The written statement is limited to eight A4 pages in total (minimum 11 point type in Arial, Times New Roman or similar font, margins at a minimum of 2.45cm). Material in excess of this limit will not be considered by the Grants and Awards Panel.

References

Two references, of no more than one A4 page each, must be provided by people who are able to comment on the nominee’s teaching against the selection criteria. Each reference should be signed and on letterhead. One of the referees must be the Head of the nominee’s Division or School. If the nomination is from a team, the references should apply to the team.

Curriculum vitae

The curriculum vitae should outline the nominee’s educational qualifications, career history, teaching positions and teaching experience. The curriculum vitae is limited to three A4 pages (all margins at a minimum of 2.45cm, text in either 11pt or 12pt Times New Roman or Verdana fonts) for nominations from individuals. Teams may extend this limit, but a limit of one page per team member is recommended.  

 

 

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