'Inspiring teacher' from UNE receives State award

December 13, 2007

A Lecturer in English from the University of New England has received one of Australia's most highly-regarded teaching awards.

The NSW Minister for Education and Training, John Della Bosca, presented Dr Jennifer McDonell with a Quality Teaching Award at a ceremony in Government House, Sydney, last Friday (7 December).

Dr McDonell was one of only eight teachers from the university sector to receive the award this year. During the ceremony, Mr Della Bosca presented 60 of the awards – the NSW Minister for Education and Training and the Australian College of Educators Quality Teaching Awards – to teachers of all levels (pre-school to tertiary) from throughout the State.

"The Quality Teaching Award is presented to teachers who demonstrate a commitment to excellence and student achievement," Mr Della Bosca explained.

"Dr McDonell is a formidable Literary Studies scholar and an inspiring teacher," he said. "She combines intellectual curiosity, enthusiasm and a caring, generous nature with a meticulous, rigorous and creative approach."

The award is recognised as the most rigorously assessed teaching award in Australia. The selection process, taking place over a full year, involves the assessment of professional portfolios and detailed referee reports as well as visits to the teaching institution for observation of the nominee in the classroom and interviews with students, teaching colleagues, and supervisory staff. The winners receive a testamur from the NSW Branch of the Australian College of Educators together with a year's free membership of the Branch, and $500 from The Daily Telegraph newspaper.

Dr McDonell said she felt honoured by the award because, in a society often driven by short-sighted instrumentalism, it recognised and respected the process of learning as a good in itself. "Education can change people's lives for the better," she said. "I aim to empathise with my students and, in teaching them literature, I invite them to reflect critically on their worlds from multiple perspectives. In this way educators play a vital role in a democratic society."

This year Dr McDonell also received a UNE Vice-Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Learning and Teaching, and a national Carrick Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Teaching and Learning.

THE PHOTOGRAPH displayed here shows Dr McDonell receiving the Quality Teaching Award from Mr Della Bosca at last Friday's ceremony in Government House, Sydney. A PHOTOGRAPH of Dr McDonell taken in the garden of Government House can be seen by clicking on the small image.

Posted by Jim Scanlan at December 13, 2007 02:50 PM