GraduateStudent TeachingAward(GSTA)

Faculty of Education Procedure

ThisisaninternalfacultydocumenttoguideNominators/NomineesinthepreparationofnominationpackagesfortheUniversityofAlbertaGraduateStudentTeachingAward.Universitypolicyforthisawardcanbefoundat UAPPOL graduate student teaching award procedure.

Purpose

ToprovideFacultyspecificeligibilityrequirements,adjudicationcriteriaandinstructionsfortheGraduateStudentTeachingAwardattheUniversityofAlberta.

Procedure

Nominations for GraduateStudentTeachingAwardwillbeadministeredbytheFacultyofEducationTeachingAwardCommittee.DepartmentChairs(orequivalent)intheFacultyofEducationwillbeinvitedtosolicitnomination(s)ofgraduatestudent(s)fortheGraduate StudentTeachingAward.

One digital copy of the nomination package should be submitted to the Faculty of Education Teaching Award Committee, c/o the Associate Dean, Undergraduate Programs and Services in the Undergraduate Student Services Office. Please refer to the Faculty of Education, Teaching Award Information webpage for information on deadlines and contact submission details.

  1. Graduate Student Eligibility

TobeeligiblefortheGraduateStudentTeachingAward,students must present a minimumGPAof3.3 andmustbemakinggoodprogressintheirdegreeprogram,asdeterminedbytheirdepartment.Nominationsshould only be submitted for studentswhoareconsideredoutstandingteachers.Studentswhoseteachingdutiesareoutsidetheirhomeunitshallbeconsidered,forthepurposeofadjudication,tobefromtheunitinwhichtheteachingdutiesareassigned.Graduate Teaching Assistants and students whoarepart-timecontractacademicstaff:teachingareeligibletobe nominated for this award. Studentsmustbenominatedwithinoneyearofcompletingtheirtermasgraduateteachingassistants or part-time academic staff: teaching.Nomineesmusthavetaughtforaminimumofone academic(fourmonth)term,notincludingtheterm inwhichthenominationismade.

  1. Nomination packages must be accompanied by a completed nomination form (see Appendix A)

This form should be affixed to the front of the nomination package.

  1. Nomination package must include the following (maximum 12 pages):
  1. Nomination letter written by the nominator detailing why nominee is deserving of this award (this should speak to the adjudication criteria listed below);
  2. Statement of Teaching Philosophy written by the nominee (1 page maximum);
  3. Universal Student Ratings of Instruction (USRI) scores (see Appendix B) for the two most general categories – ‘Overall, the quality of the course content was excellent’ and ‘Overall, this instructor was excellent’ – and an additional category at the discretion of the instructor must be submitted for each course taught, per Appendix B. For those courses where USRI scores were not collected, a comparable measure (e.g. student comments) is expected to be submitted. While it is not expected that Nominees include all comments from each of the courses taught, Nominees should ensure that evidence of course quality and instructional excellence is provided for adjudication.
  4. Any other support/evidence from students the Nominee has taught;
  5. Minimum of one letter of support from a Faculty member familiar with the Nominee’s teaching.
  1. Adjudication Criteria and Suggested Supporting Documentation

TheadjudicationcriteriafortheGraduateStudentTeachingAwardarelistedbelow.

Adjudication Criteria / Suggested Supporting Documentation (examples)
  1. Exhibitaconsistentlysuperiorcommandofthesubjectmatterbeingtaughtandattempttoprovidestudentswithacomprehensive,coherentunderstandingofthesubjectmatter
/ Reference letters from faculty members and/or students; USRI numerical scores; student comments; teaching philosophy
  1. Areprepared,organizedandabletoexplainthesubjectclearly
/ Reference letters from faculty members and/or students, USRI numerical scores, student comments
  1. Arerespectedandtrustedbystudentsandinstillinstudentsinterestandenthusiasmforthesubject
/ Letters of support from students; USRI numerical scores/student comments; cards, emails, etc. from students
  1. Arewillingtospendtimewithstudentsandareavailableandapproachableoutsidetheclassroomorlaboratory
/ Letters of support from students; USRI numerical scores/student comments; cards, emails, etc. from students
  1. Presentthesubjectmatteratalevelappropriatetostudents
/ Reference letters from faculty members and/or students; USRI numerical scores; student comments; teaching philosophy
  1. Takecareandarepromptinmarkingassignments,givefeedbackanddirectionandpromoteself-assessmentbystudents
/ Letters of support from students; USRI numerical scores/student comments; cards, emails, etc. from students; teaching philosophy

Appendix A

Graduate Student Teaching Award (GSTA)

Nomination Form

The Graduate Student Teaching Award annually recognize outstanding graduate teaching assistants in each Faculty at the University of Alberta.University policy for this award can be found at UAPPOL Graduate Student Teaching Award Procedure.

Use this form to nominate individual Graduate Students for the Faculty of Education Graduate Student Teaching Award. Complete nomination packages should be submitted to the Faculty of Education Teaching Award Committee, c/o the Associate Dean, Undergraduate Programs and Services in the Undergraduate Student Services Office. Please refer to the Faculty of Education, Teaching Award Information webpage for information on deadlines.

Award Nominee’s Name: Award Nominee’s Student ID:

Nominee’s Faculty/Department:

Nominee’s Email Address:

Nominator’s Name:

Nominator’s Relationship to Nominee:

Nominator’s Faculty/Department

Nominator’s Email Address:

Explain Nominee’s teaching responsibilities (courses in which they assisted, and/or was principal instructor, etc.):

Nominee’s current GPA (minimum 3.3 to meet eligibility requirements):

Signature of Nominator:______Signature of Nominee:______

This form should be affixed to the front of the nomination package.

Appendix B

Graduate Student Teaching Award (GSTA)

USRI Reporting

USRI ratings for courses taught in the Faculty of Education at the University of Alberta,precedingthenomination. Include USRI scores for the two most general categories – ‘Overall, the quality of the course content was excellent’ and ‘Overall, this instructor was excellent’ – and an additional category at the discretion of the instructor must be submitted for each course taught within theFaculty of Education, per the sample table below. For those courses which might not use USRI scores, a comparable measure (e.g. student comments) is expected to be submitted for the courses taught. While it is not expected that Nominees include all comments from each of the courses taught, Nominees should ensure that evidence of course quality and instructional excellence is provided for adjudication.

Sample USRI Result Report

Course 1 / Course 2
(if applicable) / Course 3
(if applicable)
1. Course # (sample) / EDXX 123
Total # Students / Students who answered question / 35/45
Question 1:
‘Overall, the quality of the course content was excellent.’ / 4.8 / 75%
4.4 / 75% / 75%
Question 2:
“Overall, this instructor was excellent.’ / 4.8 / 75%
4.8 / 75% / 75%
Question 3: At discretion of the nominee – please specify / 4.5 / 75%
4.0 / 75% / 75%

*Provide individual IDQ scores and faculty 75 percentile scores for each question.