Award winners named

October 31, 2008

A new approach to combining classroom study and experiential learning in the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) and a new interdisciplinary course project in the Department of History are the first recipients of an annual award and grant set up to encourage innovation in teaching and learning at the U of S.

Provost Brett Fairbairn announced the winners to the Oct. 23 meeting of University Council.

The WCVM's project Integrative Teaching and Learning to Bridge Basic and Clinical Sciences in Veterinary Medicine met all the criteria for the $5,000 Provost's Prize of Innovative Practice in Teaching and Learning. The collaborative unit-wide effort uses a biomedical rounds course to provide experiential learning for students, bringing together classroom work with realistic case studies.

The $10,000 Provost's Project Grant for Innovative Practices in Teaching and Learning goes to the Department of History's project The Greystone Year: An Intensive, Interdisciplinary and Collaboratively-Taught Introduction to the Western Humanistic Tradition. The project involves the development of a 12-credit foundation year course that crosses departments to offer students a broad view of a liberal arts education and an integration of ideas across discipline boundaries.

The award and grant are financed and administered through the University Learning Centre.