The Center for the Promotion of Excellence in Teaching
About Us
AAC has established the Center for the Promotion of Teaching Excellence which aims to provide students an exceptional and enriching learning experience. The center initiates workshops for improving teaching, conducts teaching satisfaction surveys, supports lecturers that seek to improve their teaching skills, integrates the use of cutting-edge technologies, and acts to reward outstanding lecturers.
The Center is responsible for the professional development of AAC faculty members. The center’s primary goals are to enrich the knowledge and pedagogical skills of the lecturers in accordance with 21st-century skills; develop optimal teaching-learning processes; encourage research on teaching in academia, and provide feedback to lecturers through teaching evaluation surveys.
The center’s pedagogical advancement and cultivation activities are based on workshops in various fields, learning through experience, and peer learning. At the same time, the center works to give expression to the students’ learning experiences by conducting teaching evaluation surveys, analyzing their findings, and bringing them to the attention of the lecturers.
Areas of activity
- Professional training in a range of pedagogical and technological topics for lecturers;
- Seminars on cultivating the quality of teaching;
- Personal support and consultation for lecturers;
- Encouragement, funding, and publication of research on teaching in academia;
- Responsibility for teaching evaluation surveys.
Annual advanced training program for lecturers
The center holds professional training for all lecturers during three periods throughout the year:
- Midterm break between semesters;
- Summer break at the end of the second semester;
- Before the first semester.
In addition to workshops for all lecturers, departmental seminars are held on topics related to the advancement of teaching at the initiative of the heads of the departments.
Teaching Evaluation Survey
Teaching evaluation surveys are used for formative evaluation of the construction of the courses and future planning of the teaching in them, as part of the culture survey in the college. However, they are not considered as an exclusive means to that ends. Lecturers are advised to take additional measures, including feedback conversations with students and peer feedback.
Teaching evaluation surveys are conducted under the responsibility of the Center for the Promotion of Excellence in Teaching, in collaboration with the Rector’s Office, the Dean of Students, the Information Technology Unit, and the Student Union.
The survey is completely anonymous. The lecturer has no possibility of knowing the identity of the students answering the survey.
Data Analysis
The data of the closed-ended questions are analyzed using descriptive statistics and are presented in a summary table (mean, standard deviation, percentage of respondents).
Survey Findings
The findings of the surveys are sent personally to the lecturers and stored in their personal file at the college. In addition, all the findings are consolidated in booklet, which are passed on to the college administration and the heads of the departments. If necessary, the college administers continuous constructive pedagogical feedback towards improving the quality of teaching in the appropriate courses, with the assistance of the Center for the Promotion of Teaching Excellence. Lecturers whose achievements in the highest teaching evaluation surveys are sent appropriate letters of praise by the Rector and the heads of the departments.
Contact Us
If you have any questions or need clarification on a specific issue, please contact Dr. Dana Aizenkot via Email: dana-aizenkot@walla.com.
