On April 19, 2013, Carleton’s Educational Development Centre recognized the work and accomplishments of teaching assistants with the End of Year Excellence Reception. More than 100 graduate students, staff and faculty members gathered to celebrate the achievements of Carleton’s diverse graduate and undergraduate teaching assistants.
The Outstanding Teaching Assistant Award was given to six individuals from across the university who have excelled in their duties as teaching assistants during the 2012-2013 academic year. Awards were presented to Akram Bin Sediq in the Department of Systems and Computer Engineering, Genevieve Ferguson and Andrew Mikhail in the Department of Biology, Don Myles in the School of Linguistics and Language Studies, Vincent Paquet in the Department of Economics and Ann Timmermans in the Department of Earth Sciences.
This was a record year for the Outstanding TA Award nominations, which were up 33 per cent from previous years. The nominations came from faculty, fellow teaching assistants and students. The six award recipients demonstrated a dedicated commitment to improving student learning and the tradition of teaching excellence at Carleton. The award includes a framed certificate and $250.
Also receiving certificates were participants of a flexible, self-directed professional development program for teaching assistants. Recipients of the Teaching Assistant Skills certificate participated in 10 training sessions, wrote two reflective response papers about teaching and learning, as well as one TA Talk article for the Teaching Assistant Training Blog. This year, nine teaching assistants completed this program.
Recipients of the Preparing to Teach certificate were also honoured at the ceremony. This certificate program is designed for PhD candidates who plan to teach in a post-secondary setting. The program, offered twice a year, gives participants hands-on experience with a range of teaching and assessment methods and an opportunity to prepare for the academic job market. This year, 34 graduate students completed the program.
The critical role of TA mentors in the development of their peers was also recognized during the ceremony. The mentors provide support to their departments and the university by guiding fellow teaching assistants as they identify and develop discipline-specific teaching skills.