The annual Singapore Management University (SMU) Teaching Excellence Awards are given to recognise and value the importance of teaching as a complex and multi-faceted activity. These awards are given to faculty for their contributions to promoting excellence in teaching and learning, to enhancing the quality of classroom experience.

Following the Provost’s Annual Address on 19 October 2016, Professor Lily Kong, Provost and Lee Kong Chian Chair Professor of Social Sciences presented awards to recipients of the Teaching Excellence Awards 2016 at SMU’s Mochtar Riady Auditorium. Congratulating all the recipients and nominees, Professor Lily Kong commended them for the tremendous effort and innovation they have put into their teaching, to make a positive difference in the students’ learning journey.

Here are this year’s winners:

• Excellent Teacher Award (Undergraduate)

The award goes to Rosie Ching Ju Mae, Senior Lecturer of Statistics, School of Economics, for effectively using interactive hands-on experiments, games, videos, current affairs and history to demystify statistics, engage students, and deepen their learning. A true inspiration to many students, Rosie is extremely dedicated and caring, and goes the extra mile to support students’ cognitive and affective development. She also contributes actively to teaching and learning through developing innovative games, collaborates with peers on research, shares at faculty development events, and mentoring students on final year projects.

Rosie has also been placed on the SMU Teaching Excellence Honour Roll 2016. The Honour Roll has been introduced this year to recognise faculty members who have received at least three SMU Undergraduate Teaching Excellence Awards.

The other nominees were:

-       Ang Ser Keng, Senior Lecturer of Finance, Lee Kong Chian School of Business

-       Roger Loh, Associate Professor of Finance, Lee Kong Chian School of Business

-       Pearl Tan, Associate Professor of Accounting, School of Accountancy

-       Kyriakos Mouratidis, Associate Professor of Information Systems, School of Information Systems

-       Locknie Hsu, Professor of Law, School of Law

-       Ijlal Naqvi, Assistant Professor of Sociology, School of Social Sciences

• Innovative Teacher Award (Undergraduate)

The award goes to Christie Napa Scollon, Associate Professor of Psychology, School of Social Sciences, for uniting science, society and education to transform students’ learning and cultivating their creativity. She effectively uses active learning and experiential learning (SMU-X), live drawings, podcasts and the jigsaw method to engage and help students learn. She also contributes actively to the scholarship of teaching and learning through pedagogical publications, teaching conferences, and involvement in curriculum and professional committees.

The other nominees were:

-       Geng Xuesong, Assistant Professor of Strategic Management, Lee Kong Chian School of Business

-       Rani Tan, Senior Lecturer of Organisational Behaviour and Human Resources, Lee Kong Chian School of Business

-       Gary Pan, Associate Professor of Accounting, School of Accountancy

-       Swapna Gottipati, Assistant Professor of Information Systems, School of Information Systems

-       Goh Yihan, Associate Professor of Law, School of Law

• Most Promising Teacher Award (Undergraduate)

The award goes to Jacob Isaac Ricks, Assistant Professor of Political Science, School of Social Sciences, for effectively developing students’ writing and research skills through response papers and research proposals, providing reading questions, crossword puzzles, research design guidelines and detailed grading rubric to help students succeed in the course, and, engaging in peer observation for continuous professional development.

The other nominees were:

-       Buket Avci, Assistant Professor of Operations Management, Lee Kong Chian School of Business

-       Helen Zhou Yangfang, Assistant Professor of Operations Management, Lee Kong Chian School of Business

-       Sterling Huang, Assistant Professor of Accounting, School of Accountancy

• Outstanding Adjunct Award (Undergraduate)

The award goes to Wong Yuet Nan, Adjunct for Information Systems, School of Information Systems, for cultivating students’ creativity, resilience and reflection, and preparing students for the real world through hands-on learning and problem-solving in a SMU-X project. He also provided career guidance and invited guest speakers to widen students’ career options.

The other nominees were:

-       Sumathi Krishna, Adjunct for Corporate Communications, Lee Kong Chian School of Business

-       Judy Tan, Adjunct for Strategy and Organisation, Lee Kong Chian School of Business

-       Ang Wei Ling, Adjunct for Statistics, School of Economics

-       Tamera Ann Fillinger, Adjunct for Law, School of Law

-       Sharon Koh, Adjunct for Psychology, School of Social Sciences

-       Jasmine E. Tan, Teaching Consultant, Centre for English Communication

• Teaching Excellence in Postgraduate Professional Programmes Award

The award goes to Mark Chong, Associate Professor of Corporate Communication, Academic Director, MSc in Communication Management, Lee Kong Chian School of Business, for being very forthcoming with feedback and engaging his students individually. He has been very professional and enthusiastic in delivery and creates an inclusive environment that encourages free exchange of ideas to enhance students’ learning experiences.

The other nominees were:

-       Alan Megargel, Senior Lecturer of Information Systems, School of Information Systems

-       Aurobindo Ghosh, Assistant Professor of Finance, Lee Kong Chian School of Business

-       Cheng Nam Sang, Associate Professor of Accounting, School of Accountancy

-       Tee Chyng Wen, Assistant Professor of Quantitative Finance, Lee Kong Chian School of Business

You can find out more about the awards and the nominees from these links:

-    Undergraduate Teaching Excellence Awards

-    Teaching Excellence in Postgraduate Professional Programmes Award

Congratulations to all nominees and recipients for their exemplary contributions and achievements in their quest for teaching excellence.

[Featured photo: The recipients and nominees of the Teaching Excellence Awards 2016, together with SMU’s senior management team.]