Central Queensland University has recognised 12 of its best teachers in its annual teaching awards.

Among the recipients of the Vice-Chancellors Excellence in Teaching Awards were:.

Antony Dekkers (Rockhampton); Karen Seary (Bundaberg); the Nullo Yumbah teaching team including Laurel Hunt, Vicki Pascoe, Jonathan Makuwira, Laurence Armstrong and Kylie Radel (Rockhampton); Peter Adams (Sydney International Campus); Ken Staib (Brisbane International Campus); Dale Trott (Rockhampton); Associate Professor Steve McKillup (Rockhampton); Dr Willam Aspden (Rockhampton); Dr Nasser Hosseinzadeh (Rockhampton); Dr Cecily Knight (Mackay); Ji Yong Park (Rockhampton) and Dr Ananda Jeeva (Rockhampton).

The Excellence in Teaching Awards is an annual award that has been established to provide public recognition of CQU’s best teachers.

The 2007 awards process has been unique in that it has allowed AIC staff to be nominated and it now provides a basis for application to university and national awards.

Speaking this week about the awards, recipients seemed overwhelmed by the recognition of their efforts.

“Personally I feel exceptionally honoured to have received this award. However it is not only a credit to the actual teaching which occurs in the classroom but is also, I believe, an endorsement of the fantastic support structure and resources which CQU makes available to lecturing staff in order to facilitate excellence in teaching,” Peter Adams, a lecturer at CQU Sydney International Campus, explained.

“... Excellence in teaching to me is the recognition that the term denotes a constantly evolving work-in-progress which along the way can reach levels of excellence but is never an end in itself.”.

Dr Ananda Jeeva said the award gave him more confidence in teaching.

“This award affirms my belief in my ability to teach students from a diverse multi-disciplinary background. It is these skills that I have been working on over the past years in my role as a lecturer. I feel that I am able to offer a substantial and sustainable commitment to teaching into the foreseeable future and I am thankful for being a part of this award.”.

For Jonathan Makuwira the award was “quite a huge leap in my professional and academic career”.

“First, it is humbling in the sense that you can be recognised for your contribution. Second, and probably more important, it is an award that injects more energy to do even more, discover more innovative teaching strategies and ultimately contribute to change in our students' lives.”.

Passionate about teaching, Dr Nasser Hosseinzadeh was delighted when he became aware he had received the award.

"This award means that I had been successful in my teaching practices.

"My main contribution to the undergraduate education has been linking my courses, final-year projects and research outcomes to the overall curriculum - aiming at achieving the graduate attributes in both technical and professional practices aspects. Of course, this could only happen by working in a team comprising of other academic staff, students and teaching support services.".

To Ken Staib, excellence in teaching is about doing things that maximize the student’s chance of success.

“At the AICs, with all non-native speaking students, I would use all the communication channels available and also try to maximize the students’ involvement with the use of role plays and revision exercises at the start of the lecture.”.

Associate Professor Steve Mckillup explains excellence in teaching as helping students develop the conceptual understanding needed in their area of expertise, as well as fostering the enthusiasm, curiosity and critical thinking that can be applied to any field in which they might subsequently work.

Dr William Aspden believes excellence in teaching includes building a professional rapport with the students: “...taking time to understand and listen to students; understanding individual learning styles; and timely constructive feedback on assessment items.”.

Key to the feelings of teaching excellence, according to Dale Trott, is to be open, honest and passionate about what you teach. “Most importantly about the learning that takes place for both the student and yourself. These experiences and this award will be foundational in my teaching and learning for the next 5 years and beyond.

Dr Cecily Knight was delighted to receive the award and said it meant a lot to have the profession of teaching so highly valued.

“Teaching is the greatest job in the world,” Dr Knight said. “ It’s such a privileged position. Our reward is not usually tangible but we know as teachers we impact on the hearts and minds of the next generation of learners".

Awardees are now eligible to be nominated for Carrick Teaching Awards and for Citations.

Photo above: Peter Adams.

Photo left: Dr Nasser Hosseinzadeh.