Awarded for demonstrated excellence in Tertiary Agriculture Education by the Australian Council of Deans of Agriculture (ACDA). Awards are for excellence in curriculum design, student support, peer support, and/or leadership to influence and enhance the student learning experience in an enduring manner. This award is intended to recognize significant and sustained contributions to Australian Agriculture Education. Up to two ‘Australian University Agriculture Education Award for Excellence in Teaching’, will be presented in 2024, including one award specifically in the individual Early Career category.

Applicants may be individual or small teams (no more than 10 members) who can demonstrate sustained excellence using appropriate evidence. Permanent or fixed term full or part-time or sessional academic staff currently employed at an Australian University that teaches Agriculture and/or related disciplines are eligible to apply. Early Career nominees have no more than five years’ experience teaching in a higher education institution. The five years can be non-sequential and must be counted on a semester basis. This includes all tutoring and part-time teaching. 

Applications close midnight (EST) Wednesday 15th November, 2023. The application should include:

Application form including the details of two referees available in October and November who can verify claims in your application with email and telephone contacts.

• A current CV of no more than 3 pages for individual and team leaders, and one page for each team member.

• A statement of no more than 4 pages that details your overall approach to teaching and learning plus information and examples from your practice that illustrate and support your approach. The application should provide details and evidence of how student learning, student engagement or student experience was influenced and improved; situate the work within relevant bodies of knowledge and describe how it draws on this to address our understanding of teaching and learning in your context at an institutional and/or national level; provide evidence of continuous monitoring and evaluation over a sustained period; be written in a clear, concise, and precise manner; and include tables and figures, as required, that meaningfully add to the narrative. A wide range of evidence should be included, but must include teaching evaluations compared to School and University ‘norms’ demonstrating sustained excellence. Contribution should have been sustained for a period of no less than three years (two years for early career), not including time taken for development or trial of any activity.  Include refereed references to support your educational approach to teaching in your preferred recognised reference style (can be single line space and Arial 9 font). Please see application form for further detail.

Additionally, successful applicants are expected to present a poster or paper during the AgEd Symposium 2024 and/or at an ACDA L&T Academy online workshop. The awards will be presented at the Symposium Dinner and registration fee will be waivered for Individual/Team leader.

Please email in a single PDF document to jwilkes2@une.edu.au no later than midnight (EST) Wednesday 15th November, 2023. Formatting is A4 pages, 1.1 to 1.5 line spacing, 1.9 cm margins, header and footer, Arial 11 font. Receipt will be acknowledged by return email.

After the closing date, no further nominations for the award will be accepted. Selection Committee members will be from the steering group of the ACDA Learning and Teaching Academy and will evaluate and select the recipients. If in the opinion of the Committee there is no candidate who has sufficient merit, the Committee may refrain from making an award. High Commendation Awards may also be given and applicants can reapply using the same context for Excellence Award in following years.

Prize – up to $2000 plus framed certificate