The University’s annual Teaching Prizes recognise the standard and levels of teaching for which it has an outstanding reputation.
Staff from the faculties of Humanities, Sciences and Social Sciences received their prizes from Vice-Chancellor Professor Dame Julia Goodfellow. The ceremony in October was hosted by Professor John Baldock, Pro-Vice-Chancellor Teaching and Learning.
Among those to receive prizes were:
- Ray Laurence, Professor of Archaeology, who established Kent’s centre in Rome. Over the years, Professor Laurence has developed a range of innovative teaching tools, such as his use of animation to explain humanities research and life in ancient Rome, which has already received more than 1.4 million views on YouTube.
- The Sciences faculty teaching prize was awarded jointly to Dr Barry Blight (Physical Sciences) for his use of technology in snap student quizzes and Dr Tarlochan Singh Gill and Dr Maureen Mounty (Medway School of Pharmacy) for their cross-institutional group work across five departments of the universities of Kent and Greenwich.
- Dr Mike Poltorak (Anthropology and Conservation) won the Social Sciences Faculty teaching prize for ‘charismatic and engaging’ teaching.
In September, the University was shortlisted by the THE for its University of the Year Award 2015 (winners announced 26 November). It was also shortlisted for a University of the Year Award in the Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2015-16, where it was ranked 23rd in the UK.
Kent also achieved its highest ever league table position in September, with a rise to 16th in the Guardian University Guide 2015.