TU/e Best Teacher Awards

APPLIED PHYSICS

Students really notice Hjalmar’s interest in the subjects he is teaching. According to Hjalmar, it is important to have fun with the subjects taught. Instead of having static lectures, he tries to get the students excited about the physics covered in lectures by demonstrating it through very simple but helpful experiments.

He also has another very ingenious philosophy about coffee breaks. He thinks that is the time to guide students to bond together. This results in recharging the students better for the next part of the lecture. Moreover, it helps students meet each other and work together on the exercises in the course.  
 
Sometimes Hjalmar brings out his guitar, as in March 2020. The now third-year students still know and talk about the time Hjalmar played his guitar during the lecture break, that helped bring light to uncertain times. 

Physics is often seen as a difficult to grasp and boring subject, but Hjalmar brings excitement to the classroom! 

MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTER SCIENCE

Where previously a more classical method was used for Analysis 1 & 2, often relying on a relatively old book, Jim has taken the liberty of writing his own lecture notes from scratch. In these notes, Jim approaches Analysis from the perspective of a first-year student. He spends a lot of time and effort in making sure students feel confident in knowing the basics, before diving into more difficult mathematical problems.  

Jim taught the Analysis 1 course at a time when it was very uncertain whether teaching could continue on campus or whether it would have to move back online. When teaching did indeed move to an online setting, Jim made sure that time was also set aside to discuss with students how they were doing from a wellness perspective. For students who did not pass the course Analysis 1 for the first time, he organised evening sessions where students could go to ask questions and prepare for the resit together. 

Jim is a fan of interacting with students and making sure they are doing well. He knew the names of all the students present on campus and named them whenever they had a question during the lecture. In this way, the students got the feeling that they were real persons and not just numbers.

Jim always tries to put himself in the shoes of the students. Jim acknowledges the obstacles that the course presents and takes away stress and pressure by doing so.

BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING

When Sandra heard about her nomination, she immediately sent a message to her students thanking them for their appreciation of her work and effort. That characterizes her.  
 
Sandra tries to work with the feedback of her students and continuously tries to implement small changes to her lectures to help solve the problems that students encounter. Even though the course content can be quite difficult to understand and quite abstract, Sandra does her best to try and help students visualize the concepts that they are trying to study. When she does this her passion and interest in the subject is clear to see for all.  

Sandra ensures that students feel welcome to approach her for questions whether they are really good, quite poor, extremely motivated or a bit behind in her course. 

Every student feels like they are being helped, regardless of their skill level. 

INDUSTRIAL DESIGN

Max’ approach is refreshing, because his work redefines the role between student and teacher. While his expertise and experience are present, he does not claim or demand expert status.

Max emphasizes the need for honest communication in science, and research as a process and not as the perfect outcome. This setup seems to be helpful for students to challenge themselves, stay engaged, and feel encouraged to try different methodologies and communicate their insights to peers.  

Max is particularly concerned with community building. During COVID, he provided students with the opportunity to check-in daily for 15 minutes; from 2020 until 2022. These "stand-ups" were central for many students to stay connected during the most difficult times, to focus on their studies, but also to find ways to express and overcome their common struggles.

Max interacts with students on common ground, is deliberately approachable, and lowers communication barriers across different channels.