Winner of the Social Sciences Faculty Award and the Butterworth Memorial Award - Akinyemi Oyawale (Politics and International Studies)

My teaching philosophy is underpinned by the doctrine of Nobody Left Behind. In my teaching, I view students as partners with agency to not merely listen and absorb knowledge from a so-called ‘sage on a stage’, rather as active participants who bring a diversity of rich lived experiences. Combining a Warwick’s ambition of boundless learning with a critical ethos that encourages endless questioning and a transgressive (against oppressive structures) praxis, I have actively supported students in their overall development including providing academic and pastoral support, feedback and assessment that can help student grow.

About Akinyemi

Akin is an Assistant Professor in International Relations at PAIS and prior to this role, he held a Teaching Fellowship in the same department. Since joining PAIS in 2019, he has taught and co-taught various modules related to international relations theory, international security, critical security studies, terrorism, and race. Akinyemi has also been awarded the Butterworth Memorial Award which celebrates the exceptional achievement of early career WATE winners.

Highly Commended - Rachel Turner-King (Education Studies)

I have a longstanding commitment to creating welcoming, caring, and dynamic spaces of learning for a diversity of students. Throughout my core teaching and extra-curricular opportunities, I position students as ‘co-creators’, inviting them into meaningful real-world contexts to collaborate with communities and local schools, as well as learning alongside professional artists and arts organisations. This work is regionally based and internationally connected. Their participation in my teaching and research has had notable positive impacts on their learning and skills development. Students have inspired Coventry-based young people and communities, demonstrating that imaginative, student-centred teaching and research can nurture creative and caring citizens.

About Rachel

Rachel Turner-King is Associate Professor of Creativity, Performance and Education in Education Studies and Course Leader of the MA in Drama and Theatre Education. Her research interests are eco-pedagogy and education for sustainable development, the theory and practice of hospitality and conviviality in public spaces and devising performance with young people.

Commended - Arthur Galichère (Economics)

 As an economics teacher, I am driven by a strong desire to share the powerful toolset that economics offers for understanding the world. My foremost goal is to inspire and motivate my students to think critically, creatively and logically. I prioritize clarity and accessibility in my teaching, and I am always exploring innovative methods to make learning both enjoyable and meaningful, such as games and experiments. I believe that every student possesses the potential to succeed, and I am committed to empowering them to become confident, independent learners capable of taking on any challenge they encounter.

About Arthur

Arthur is a young academic who joined in 2021 the Economics Department at Warwick as a Teaching Fellow. Arthur taught seminars and supervised dissertations during his first year at Warwick and completed his PhD in June 2022. He became lecturer of the core second-year module 'Macroeconomics 2' in 2023.

Postgraduates who teach award: Social Sciences Faculty

Winner - Giulia Lorenzi (Philosophy)

Given that I consider philosophy more a practice than a discipline, in teaching seminars in this field, I am guided by the intention of enabling my students to do philosophy, to practice their philosophical skills, build their own views, question the world, and become independent, autonomous thinkers. Thus, in my sessions, I am committed to provide a friendly, welcoming environment which allows my students to feel that they can safely express themselves interacting with each other and me. Following the principles of active learning, I am also keen in providing engaging seminar materials, and designing interesting class activities.

About Giulia

Giulia Lorenzi is a PhD candidate and TA in the Department of Philosophy. Influenced by her musical practice as a horn player, her research concerns the development of a philosophical account of the perception of music. She works at the intersection of philosophy of mind, perception, action, and music.

Winner - Mouli Banerjee (Politics and International Studies)

As a ‘PGR who teaches’, I see myself as a friend and mentor to students, and a bridge between them and senior academics. My approach to pedagogy is deeply personal and aimed towards making the discipline and its disciplinary confluences come alive in the seminars. With a mix of participative seminar activities and with open and inclusive conversations, I hope to instil in students a curiosity about the subject beyond just an academic process, and create a space where they can imagine the many ways in which one can actively participate in creating knowledge both in and outside the seminars.

About Mouli

Mouli Banerjee (she/her) is a PhD candidate at the department of Politics and International Studies. Her PhD research studies how political parties in India see and talk about themselves as organisations, and how this is reflected in the parties’ legislative behaviour, and their interactions with civil society and judicial institutions.

Commended - Sun Park (Sociology)

I believe that sustainable teaching not only maintains the identity of a module but absorbs new issues in relevant fields. I also believe that sustainable teaching responds to students’ ascertained and potential needs to settle in a module. This teaching philosophy motivated me to try new pedagogies such as scenario-based teaching and co-practices with students. The most important ethos for teaching a trans/interdisciplinary module – across culture, policy and technology in my case – was to ensure that every student with different cultural and academic backgrounds can engage in any lecture content and discussions.

About Sun

Sun Park is a PhD candidate in the Department of Sociology. Her research explores how UNESCO can recognise the work of Artificial Intelligence as future cultural heritage. She has been teaching modules of the Department of Sociology, the School of Law and the Centre for Cultural and Media Policy Studies.

Commended - Dan Wood (Politics and International Studies)

My teaching philosophy tries to maximise student engagement by creating a learning environment which is inclusive and centred on student needs and experiences. Rather than seeing politics as done by elites in specific places, I encourage students to recognise the politics all around them. By providing students with engaging and detailed handouts and considering research informed topics or examples from around the world, students are encouraged to critically engage with politics. Knowledge exchange and learning from each other, as typified in the seminar where the students designed their own democratic system, is key to student engagement and my pedagogy.

About Dan

I am a second year PhD student in PAIS. My work focusses on the politics of Global Finance, specifically the politics of passive investment and its crucial role for the largest global asset managers, such as BlackRock and Vanguard. This is also my first year as a GTA within PAIS.