LIMELIGHT 0109
Last updated by: Helen Dobson on 14 January 2009 - 11:59am
2nd Edition of the Academy Newsletter
Limelight
0109
Welcome from the President
2008 has seen The Academy progress from a twinkle in the eyes of many to a living entity. This tremendous result stems from the sustained efforts of the working group and core Ako Aotearoa staff seconded to this project. 2009 will be an equally “watershed” year for The Academy. The Academy must deliver measurable outcomes and be seen as offering value to its members as well as assisting in meeting the objectives of Ako Aotearoa itself. The formally elected executive committee is charged with the job of not only meeting these immediate objectives but also consolidating, and expanding the sphere of influence of The Academy. These are no small tasks. Teachers in our tertiary sector know little of us or our parent body. In order to meet our stated aims and objectives, we need to address this “awareness issue” in a constructive way and strive to position The Academy appropriately in our sector. In addition to growing The Academy, the communities’ knowledge base on the web site will need to be further developed and matured. This major resource will ultimately become a key “selling point” in helping to meet our objectives and the needs of our members. These tasks are clearly not the sole domain of the execute committee and so I ask all of you to play your part in building the capacity of The Academy. How? Contribute articles to your community of practice, tell your colleagues about Ako Aotearoa, The Academy and the TTE Awards. Sell the value and importance of teaching as widely as possible in your organisation.
Together, we can make your professional body not only highly successful and influential but have it become the premier teaching and learning resource in the tertiary sector.
I wish you all a splendid 2009 academic year and hope that we will see as many of you as possible at the 2009 Symposium.
Karl G. Dodds
President AAATTE
The first Executive Committee Meeting
At the meeting held on 11th December Karl Dodds was elected to the position of Academy President. Karl was the supreme award winner for 2006. He has 3 distinct areas of content expertise (Math, physics and programming). His teaching career spans some 25+ years during which time he has been a Head of Department and more recently, Head of School (Mathematics and Statistics) at Christchurch Polytechnic Institute of Technology). Karl was instrumental in the establishment of the Academy and was a member of the working group.
Notes of the meeting will be posted on the website shortly.
The next meeting is scheduled for the 27th January 2008. If there are any matters you would like raised then please let me know. (NOTE: the date was incorrectly shown as 17th Jan in the email to members)
Join the TTEA Judging Panel
The Panel have invited a representative of the Academy to join the group. If you would like further information go to: http://akoaotearoa.ac.nz/community/ako-aotearoa-academy-tertiary-teaching-excellence/resources/files/join-ttea-judging-panel .
Contribute to the TTEA Application process
The Academy will be launching a FAQ site to assist applicants preparing their portfolio. They will also be creating a database of members that would be wiling to become mentors for future applicants. You can participate by sharing your enthusiasm and expertise. If you wish to participate please let me know.
Write for the Education Review
The education review has indicated that they would like to have regular articles from the Academy. If you are interested in submitting an article between 300 and 1200 words then please let me know.
News from Auckland
Peter Mellow, Debbie Corder and Welby Ings met with the two managers of AUT’s CEPD (centre for professional development) to debrief them about the Academy Wellington meeting. They are planning a ‘focus on learning and teaching’ month for 2009, with a couple of events (guest lectures, workshops, etc.) being offered each week of the month to try and raise the profile of learning and teaching for academic staff.
Peter Mellow has started editing the clips he filmed in Wellington. Peter has been very impressed with what has been said and believes now, more than ever how valuable this project can become. The members he interviewed are very inspirational as well as giving some really practical teaching tips. His video will be available on line in the near future.
Waikato’s progress
A group of members from Waikato (Wintec and University of Waikato) held their first meeting earlier this month. Although they did not come out of the meeting with one clear direction they did discuss a lot of possibilities. These were; Supporting colleagues in achieving excellence in tertiary teaching, promoting the Academy, promoting and supporting colleagues from all sectors), in putting submissions forward for the awards, arranging (through the academy) for international guest speakers to embark on a road show across the country, research projects, workshops for teachers considering putting forward submissions. The group will decide on an action plan before mid February.
What has been happening at Massey - Palmerston North
Following the Ako Aotearoa symposium in Wellington, a group of award winners from Massey University held an informal meeting to discuss a suggestion made by our Vice-Chancellor, Steve Maharey, about the formation of a Teaching Think Tank. They then met with the Vice Chancellor in November and it was decided that in 2009, a half day meeting of the Think Tank members would be held. The Think Tank will be comprised of Massey tertiary teaching award winners - both university and national awardees. The purpose in the forum will be to discuss:
1. How can staff at Massey offer an exceptional and distinctive learning experience at our university in the 21st century?
2. What opportunities and challenges are facing current teaching staff?
3. What roles should the Teaching Think Tank group play in enhancing the profile and quality of teaching at Massey
Read more here http://akoaotearoa.ac.nz/community/ako-aotearoa-academy-tertiary-teaching-excellence/resources/pages/academy-members-establis
If you and fellow members have been busy promoting the Academy or teaching and learning please share your progress with other members either on the website or by emailing me at h.m.dobson@akoaotearoa.co.nz for inclusion in the next limelight.
The Website
The Ako Aotearoa website resources are being added to every day with some great work being posted around assessment. NOTE to view any of the items below on the Academy Community website you must be logged in
The Academy site continues to grow and some of the outputs from the Symposium have now been uploaded. Don’t forget that if you are an Academy member you can post your own resources or comment on postings loaded by other people. If you aren’t sure how it works let me know and I can help.
Your Limelight Editor
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