2006
Adelaide lecturers among nation's best

Seven University of Adelaide teaching staff were named among the best in Australia, receiving national citations for excellence in teaching.

The Australian Learning and Teaching Council (ALTC) named our Adelaide teaching staff in its inaugural Citations for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning, worth $10,000 each.

The citations recognise the unique contributions to quality teaching by academic staff from universities around Australia.

The seven staff nominated by the University of Adelaide for 2006 and awarded by the Australian Learning and Teaching Council are:

Dr Ben Cazzolato (Mechanical Engineering) for the development of innovative and engaging approaches to teaching and assessing control theory in order to stimulate independent learning and critical thinking.

Dr Anna Chur-Hansen (Psychiatry) for outstanding contributions to research and literature related to the education of health professionals, which have benefited the learning experiences of students locally, nationally and internationally.

Associate Professor Mark Jaksa (Civil, Environmental & Mining Engineering) for the creation of innovative teaching resources that reflect enthusiasm for and a command of the field and that lead to enhanced student understanding of the principles of geotechnical engineering.

Associate Professor Amanda LeCouteur (Psychology) for excellence in teaching and for institutional leadership in promoting student-centred learning in the discipline of psychology.

Associate Professor Holger Maier (Civil, Environmental & Mining Engineering) for sustained contributions to the development and promotion of online situational learning for the development of graduate attributes.

Dr Joy McEntee (English) for modelling an "infectious enthusiasm" for learning and teaching as stimulating and emotionally rewarding experiences, inspiring both learners and teachers over a 10-year period.

Associate Professor David Paton (Earth & Environmental Sciences) for the provision of resources and curricula that result in experiential learning opportunities for undergraduate students in the environmental sciences.

The University's Deputy Vice-Chancellor & Vice-President (Academic), Professor Fred McDougall, offered his congratulations to all of the citation recipients, noting that "their achievement is further evidence of the quality of teaching at the University of Adelaide".

"All of the citation recipients are previous winners of our own awards for excellence in teaching," Professor McDougall said.

"Innovations in teaching being practised by our academic staff mean that our students have the best possible chance to learn and succeed in their chosen fields of study.

"Importantly, the quality of our teaching is based on the latest research outcomes, which means students receive a cutting-edge and well-rounded education at the University of Adelaide," he said.