External Awards

Each external award honours a different cluster of criteria. The table below provides an overview of the criteria usually considered by each award. 

Criteria	Blizzard	Reimagine	D2L	OCUFA	3M
Individual instruction	N	Y	Y	Y	Y
Face-to-face instruction	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Online  instruction	Y	Y	Y	Y	Y
Team initiative	Y	Y	N	N	N
Innovation	Y	Y	Y	N	N
Educational research	Y	N	Y	Y	Y
Educational leadership	N	N	N	Y	Y
Internal award	N	N	N	Y	Y

What are team initiatives? Team initiatives include team-taught courses, collaborative program redesigns or creation, and collaborative teaching innovations.

What counts as an innovation in teaching? An innovation might mean the use of emerging educational technology, the implementation of an innovative course design or strategy, the sustained introduction of innovations by an instructor over a period of time, or bringing an approach from outside the instructor’s own discipline to bear on their teaching.

What is educational research? Many teaching awards wish to see nominees involved in educational research, that is, the study and dissemination of the effectiveness of a teaching strategy or initiative in scholarly, peer-reviewed venues.

What is educational leadership? An educational leader shares their teaching expertise and advocates for best practices around teaching and learning in some of the following ways: delivering workshops, organizing events, delivering conference presentations, leading course or program redesigns, participating in teaching-related committee work, and providing mentorship to new faculty.

Why is an internal teaching award important? While having received an internal teaching award is not an explicit criteria of any of the external teaching awards, it is certainly an advantage. For the OCUFA and 3M awards in particular, an internal teaching award is important. To see if an instructor has received a University of Waterloo Distinguished Teacher Award (DTA), refer to the list of DTA recipients. Visit our teaching awards page to learn how to nominate an instructor for an internal award.

Evidence of effectiveness: While the criteria for each award may be different, all external teaching awards wish to see evidence of the effectiveness of the nominated instructor, team, or initiative. Evidence can be provided in the form of:

• letters of support from students and colleagues
• course evaluations 
• educational research conducted by the nominated instructor or team on the effectiveness of implemented strategies, initiatives, or innovations 
• educational leadership efforts, such as delivering workshops on teaching or mentoring junior faculty.

Four of the five major teaching awards recognize individual achievements in teaching and learning:

• 3M National Teaching Fellowship
• OCUFA Teaching Award
• D2L Innovation Award
• Reimagine Education Awards

These awards have some overlap in their criteria, so it’s important to find the award that is the best fit for the instructor.

A step-by-step guide to finding the right award for an excellent instructor

Follow the sequence of questions and answers below to find out which steps to take next when thinking about nominating an individual instructor for an award.

1. Is there evidence of the instructor’s effectiveness over time?

Evidence of an instructor’s effectiveness can come in many forms: course evaluations over a period of years, positive feedback from students and colleagues, peer evaluations, teaching awards or recognition, the ongoing success of any teaching-related initiatives led by the instructor, and educational research conducted by the instructor or team on the effectiveness of their strategies, initiatives, or innovations.

No: If the instructor has yet to compile evidence of their teaching effectiveness, the CTE offers consultations on how to create and strengthen teaching dossiers. Get in touch with Alisa Sivak, Communications Associate, for support.

Yes: You're on the right track. Continue reading.

2. Has the instructor won an internal teaching award?

For the OCUFA and 3M awards in particular, an internal teaching award is important. To see if an instructor has received a University of Waterloo Distinguished Teacher Award (DTA), refer to the list of DTA recipients. 

No: If the instructor has not won an internal award, visit our teaching awards page to learn more about Waterloo teaching awards.

Yes: You're on the right track. Keep reading. 

3. Is the instructor an innovator in teaching and learning?

An innovation in teaching and learning can take many forms: it might mean the use of emerging educational technology, the implementation of an innovative course design or strategy, the sustained introduction of innovations by an instructor over a period of time, or bringing an approach from outside the instructor’s own discipline to bear on their teaching.

No: If innovation is not an appropriate measure of the instructor’s teaching effectiveness, skip to the next question.

Yes: Consider nominating the instructor for a D2L Innovation Award in Teaching and Learning or a Reimagine Education Award.

For support in nominating an instructor for either award, contact Alisa Sivak, Communications Associate, CTE.

4. Is the instructor an educational leader?

An educational leader is someone who shares their teaching expertise and advocates for best practices around teaching and learning in some of the following ways: delivering workshops, organizing events, delivering conference presentations, leading course or program redesigns, participating in teaching-related committee work, and providing mentorship to new faculty.

Many teaching awards also wish to see nominees involved in educational research, i.e., the study and dissemination of the effectiveness of a teaching strategy or initiative in scholarly, peer-reviewed venues.

No: To learn about ways instructors can get involved in educational leadership on campus at Waterloo, contact Alisa Sivak, Communications Associate, CTE.

Yes: You're on the right track. Continue reading. 

5. Does the instructor conduct educational research?

Many teaching awards wish to see nominees involved in educational research, i.e., the study and dissemination of the effectiveness of a teaching strategy or initiative in scholarly, peer-reviewed venues.

No: CTE’s Instructional Developer, Research, is a great resource to consult when an instructor wants to begin an educational research project. CTE also offers Learning Innovation and Teaching Enhancement (LITE) grants. Get in touch with Crystal Tse to learn more.

Yes: Great! Consider nominating the instructor for: 

• The OCUFA Teaching Award or
• The 3M National Teaching Fellowship

If the nominee is an exceptional instructor and an educational leader and researcher, they will be a great fit for the OCUFA and 3M teaching awards.

The OCUFA Teaching Award, as a provincial-level award, is often the place to start before considering the national 3M Teaching Fellowship.

For support in nominating an instructor for the 3M or OCUFA award, get in touch with Alisa Sivak, Communications Associate, CTE.

Two of the five major external teaching awards recognize team teaching initiatives:

• Alan Blizzard Award
• Reimagine Education Awards

Team teaching initiatives include team-taught courses, collaborative program redesigns or creation, and collaborative teaching innovations and can involve instructors, staff, and students. 

These awards have some overlap in their criteria, so it’s important to find the award that is the best fit for the instructor.

A step-by-step guide to finding the right award for a team teaching initiative

Follow the sequence of questions and answers below to find out which steps to take next when thinking about nominating a team for an award.

1. Is there evidence of the effectiveness of the team project over time?

Evidence of the effectiveness of a team-led initiative can come in many forms: course evaluations over a period of years, positive feedback from students and colleagues, peer evaluations, program enrolment rates, teaching awards or recognition, the expansion of the program within an institution or beyond the institution, and educational research conducted by the team on the effectiveness of their strategies, initiatives, or innovations.

No: If the team has yet to compile evidence of their teaching effectiveness, the CTE offers consultations on how to conduct research evaluating the effectiveness of teaching initiatives. Get in touch with Crystal Tse, Instructional Developer, Research.

Yes: You’re on the right track. Continue reading.

2. Has the nature of the collaboration had a significant impact on student engagement?

No: If the collaborative process was not a key driver of the initiative’s success, continue reading.

Yes: Great! Consider nominating the team for the Alan Blizzard Award.

The Alan Blizzard Award is a biennial award that recognizes collaboration in teaching and specifically asks nominees to link the nature of their collaboration to their project’s objectives and effectiveness.

For support in nominating a team for this award, contact Alisa Sivak, Communications Associate, CTE.

3. Is the team teaching effort innovative?

No: If the nature of the collaboration did not have an impact on student engagement, and if the team teaching project was not innovative, the team may not be the right fit for one of the external teaching award. Still not sure? Contact Alisa Sivak for support.

Yes: Great! Consider nominating the team for one of the Reimagine Education Awards. 

For support in nominating a team for this award, contact Alisa Sivak, Communications Associate, CTE.