The National Forum is delighted to announce the nine nominees, from six higher education institutions, shortlisted for Ireland’s Teaching and Learning Research Fellowships. This is an outstanding personal achievement for the nominees and a significant professional honour. The Fellowships, which are the country’s most prestigious national individual teaching and learning awards, will:
- recognise, reward and celebrate those who have demonstrated, through practice, scholarship and leadership, a deep commitment to the enhancement of teaching and learning in higher education.
- provide an opportunity for Fellows to share their knowledge and to expand their expertise in a variety of ways, including through research and scholarship, both nationally and internationally.
- provide a robust evidence base for future teaching and learning enhancement decision-making across the sector.
A total of 54 applications, from across 16 Irish higher education institutions, were received for Ireland’s inaugural Teaching and Learning Research Fellowships, which were launched on 13 January 2020 by the National Forum in partnership with the Irish Research Council (IRC). On 10 March, on completion of the longlisting process, a total of 26 applicants from across 11 higher education institutions were invited to Stage 2 of the selection process. Following that stage, nine nominees are now being invited to Stage 3 which will take place in the first week in June 2020. The Stage 3 interview process will result in the awarding of up to five Fellowships, each valued at €45,000.
Applications at each stage are reviewed by an international expert panel made up of colleagues working in Canada, Poland, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, the Netherlands, the UK and the US. In addition, the student partnership indicator of all applications was reviewed by a student representative. The three-stage review process is being overseen by a technical group including representatives of the Irish Universities Association, the Technological Higher Education Association, the Higher Education Colleges Association, the Union of Students in Ireland, the IRC and the National Forum.
The shortlisted nominees now proceeding to Stage 3 of the selection process are as follows:
Brett Becker, University College Dublin
Ronan Bree, Dundalk Institute of Technology
Bernadette Brereton, Dundalk Institute of Technology
Tara Cusack, University College Dublin
Michelle Flood, Royal College of Surgeons
Chris Lynch, University College Cork
Eabhnat Ní Fhloinn, Dublin City University
Geraldine O’Neill, University College Dublin
Barry Ryan, Technological University Dublin
The scholarly evidence generated through these Fellowships will contribute towards a valued and informed teaching and learning culture in Irish higher education.
The National Forum would like to again express heartfelt congratulations to all of those who were longlisted for Stage 2 of the selection process and wish the shortlisted nominees well in the next round.
Further information about Ireland’s Teaching and Learning Research Fellowships is available here.
