College lecturer awarded prestigious prize for teaching excellence
"I find the students' enthusiasm inspiring and energising. Their questions often lead me to dig deeper into the subject and I learn new things every time I teach"
A St John’s academic has scooped a Pilkington Prize for his exemplary teaching of mathematics.
Dr John R. Taylor has been named as one of the 12 winners of the University of Cambridge Pilkington Prizes which are awarded annually by the Vice-Chancellor to people who make a substantial contribution to the teaching programme of a Department, Faculty or the University of Cambridge.
Dr Taylor, who is College Lecturer in Applied Mathematics and Reader in Oceanography, has been awarded £1,000 as a prize winner. He said: "I feel tremendously fortunate to teach Maths at Cambridge and I love interacting with the students, whether in discussions after lectures or in supervisions in college. I find the students' enthusiasm inspiring and energising. Their questions often lead me to dig deeper into the subject and I learn new things every time I teach."
In recent years Dr Taylor has lectured Differential Equations to the Part IA students. He has also lectured Fluid Dynamics of Climate in Part III and is the Director of CATAM, a series of computer projects done in Parts IB and II. He was Director of Studies in Maths at St John’s from 2018-2020.
The Prize was endowed and inaugurated in 1994 by Cambridge alumnus Sir Alastair Pilkington, who believed that the quality of teaching was crucial to the University’s success and wanted to reward excellence.
Nominations may be made for a variety of reasons, including making substantial contributions to teaching and assessment, for example introducing a new course or innovative use of technology; teaching in outreach work or summer schools; engagement with and feedback from students, and enthusiasm for the subject, with the ability to provide challenging and stimulating teaching at all levels.
A full list of this year’s winners.
Published: 23/04/2020