Teaching Excellence of “World-Leading” Fellows Recognised in Awards

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Written by:

Paul Holland

Posted:

07 Mar 2024

Professor Alexandra (Sasha) Turchyn and Dr Lee de-Wit are among 12 Cambridge academics recognised for their contribution to teaching excellence across the University today.

The annual Pilkington Prizes are awarded to individuals who make a substantial contribution to the teaching programme of a Department, Faculty or the University as a whole.

Both Fellows were recognised for their passion, dedication and world-leading contributions to teaching.

Mary Hockaday, Master of Trinity Hall, said: “There is nothing more important than teaching students brilliantly so they can reach their potential for academic excellence, so it is wonderful to see two Trinity Hall Fellows awarded a Pilkinton prize for teaching this year.

“I congratulate Dr de-Wit and Professor Turchyn for this accolade. These awards remind us that brilliance, dedication and creativity in educating our students doesn’t go unnoticed.”

Trinity Hall’s Senior Tutor, Dr Michael Sutherland, said: “We aspire to the highest standards of undergraduate teaching and it is wonderful to see that two of the twelve Pilkington prizes awarded this year go to Trinity Hall Fellows. Congratulations to Dr de-Wit and Professor Turchyn, and thank you both for inspiring our students.”

In the citation submitted by the Department of Earth Sciences Professor Turchyn’s dedication to students, running fieldtrips, and her work to introduce a new Part IB course (Quantitative Environmental Sciences, or QES) to the Natural Sciences curriculum were all noted.

Professor Turchyn is Staff Fellow and Director of Studies in Earth Sciences at Trinity Hall, as well as being a Postgraduate Tutor. She said: “Being part of the team that created Quantitative Environmental Sciences (QES) has been one of the most rewarding things I have done in my career, and has allowed me to really feel that we are teaching the next generation the key skills to understand the environmental and climate-related problems that they will deal with in their lives.”

The citation also read: “Professor Sasha Turchyn is a world-leading educator. She has been a pivotal contributor to the Earth Sciences teaching programme since she began in 2009. She has led courses across all 4 year groups and contributed to nearly all field courses that are taught.”

Commenting on her work to introduce the new Part IB course the citation added: “Students and staff alike are raving about the course, which is a real measure of Sasha’s talents and merit.”

Lee de-Wit smiling in a photo taken in Trinity Hall's grounds

Dr de-Wit, a Staff Fellow in Psychology and Director of Studies in Psychology and Behavioural Science at Trinity Hall, said: “Educating the next generation of students is one of the most impactful things we can do, and I am passionate about the potential of psychology to equip our students to think about the complex challenges society will face, from growing concerns about mental health, to the drivers and implications of political polarization.

“It is an honour to see the work we are doing in psychology to advance the development of our students recognised with this award.”

Dr de-Wit was praised by the Department of Psychology and described as: “a driving force behind educational innovation for our undergraduates.” He was, the citation added, an academic who “has spearheaded numerous initiatives, championing efforts to decolonise the curriculum, establishing new academic roles tailored to the unique careers of psychology students, introducing innovative assessment practices, and collaborating with departmental experts to foster institution-wide dialogues on student wellbeing.”

In the citation for the awards he was described as: “a passionate educator who consistently goes above and beyond the call of duty, earning sincere appreciation from both students and colleagues alike.”

The awards were initiated by Sir Alastair Pilkington who believed that the quality of teaching was crucial to the University’s success. The 12 winners will be celebrated at a ceremony at St John’s College on Friday, June 21. For more on the prize-winners see the Cambridge Centre for Teaching and Learning website.