Andy Farquharson Teaching Excellence Award

The Andy Farquharson Teaching Excellence Award celebrates teaching excellence among UVic graduate student teaching assistants.

The award is administered by the Office of the Dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies.

Eligibility

The following graduate students are eligible to apply:

• Teaching Assistants involved in teaching activities as a TA (not as a sessional) at UVic during the 12 months prior to the deadline (generally hired under CUPE 4163)
• Lab Instructors or Senior Lab Instructors who teach the lab sections of courses

Sessional Instructors are not eligible for this award.

Award criteria

It is assumed that candidates will be in the process of developing these skills and attributes, not necessarily having already mastered them.

Student-centred / learning-oriented approach to teaching

• Fosters excitement and enthusiasm about learning
• Applies scholarly approach to teaching
• Displays innovative instructional approach informed by Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL)
• Creates open learning environments; is supportive of diverse student needs

Institutional values and adherence to UVic learning outcomes

• Inspires and mentors academic development
• Fosters development of academic skills (e.g., critical thinking, writing and communication skills)
• Is cognisant of the value of integrating research and teaching

Personal qualities that contribute to teaching

• Models appropriate scholarly, professional and ethical behaviour (e.g., lab safety)
• Is self-reflective about teaching (shows improvement over time)
• Demonstrates leadership qualities (e.g., collaborative, commitment to excellence)
• Contributes to the learning goals of the course instructor

Nomination components

Submit your nomination through the online form. Submit all the nomination components in one combined PDF.

Nominee bio

Include a summary of the nominee’s distinctive contributions, including their teaching practices and philosophy. This will be used to brief the adjudicators and for promotional purposes if the nominee is the successful candidate. (100 words maximum.)

Nomination letter

A signed written statement (500 words maximum) including:

• Teaching practices
• Teaching philosophy
• Impact of teaching on student learning specific to award criteria

• Nomination letter must be endorsed by the graduate student’s department chair, director, associate dean, or dean to ensure the student is in good academic standing and has fulfilled their current and previous teaching assistant duties.

One letter of support

• The letter of support must be written primarily by a faculty member and can include additional authors (students or faculty members). (500 words maximum) 
• The letter of support should address nominees' effective teaching practices (e.g., student engagement, student learning, value of the courses to their overall program, effective teaching strategies, creativity in course design, teaching inspired by research, student mentoring, and innovative or effective assignments)

Curriculum Vitae (CV)

Max 5 pages. Must include:

• Education and other relevant experience
• Employment history
• Relevant teaching awards
• Courses taught

Additional supporting materials

You can upload up to 3 optional files, such as a teaching dossier, CES, course syllabi, additional letters of support, websites, media clips, or articles.
Supporting evidence should be referenced in the nomination letter and depending on the length of materials may not be thoroughly reviewed (e.g., books or manuscripts).