Learning and Teaching Awards – SASS (School of Arts and Social Sciences)

The School of Arts and Social Sciences’ (SASS) inaugural Learning and Teaching Awards took place on 13th June. School staff were encouraged to submit examples of their good practice in relation to teaching and learning, methods of assessment and feedback, employability skills development and student support.

From a very strong field, finalists were selected to present in front of a large, well-fed and encouraging audience. Generous cash prizes were provided by Learning Enhancement and Development (LEaD).

The difficult but highly rewarding job of awarding the prizes was in the capable hands of the judges: Dr Lauren Knott (Associate Dean for Education), Dr Jane Secker (Senior Lecturer, LEaD), Maryann Kernan (Associate Dean for Student Experience) and Peter Kogan (Senior Educational Technologist, LEaD).

After much careful deliberation by the judges and an optional glass of liquid, the winners were announced by Professor Chris Greer, Dean of SASS.

The first prize of £1,500 was shared between Dr Jutta Tobias Mortlock (Psychology) and Richard Evans (Journalism). Jutta’s entry was titled Organisational Psychology: The perils and joys of working with others. Richard’s entry was titled Embedding employability in the journalism curriculum.

Three runners-up prizes of £500 were awarded to Dr Dina Fainberg (History) and Connie Tse (Educational Technology Team, LEaD) for Digital history vault: a collaborative digital history project for history students at City; Dr Leonie Fleischmann (International Politics) for Innovating the seminar: activities to engage students, encourage participation and develop skills and Dr Stian Reimers (Psychology) for Quodl: supporting students and enlivening lectures with a live quizzing web app.

In line with current trends in democratic decision-making, a People’s Vote (using Poll Everywhere) enabled the well-informed audience to choose its favourite entry. Jutta won the £500 prize for this.

Professor Greer commented on the strength of the presentations and how they demonstrated the diversity and effectiveness of teaching practice in SASS. He also thanked the organising team, with a special mention for Jay Leighton and Lauren Knott, for creating such an enjoyable event.

The Educational Technology Team from LEaD that works with SASS (and SHS) will be writing follow-up blog posts on some of the entries and following up with both participants and audience members in order to encourage further collaborations with School staff.