Graduate Teaching Award for Independent Instruction
Eligibility
Every Rice graduate student who served as an Instructor of Record in either the Fall of 2023, Spring of 2024, or Summer of 2024, and who has not previously won this award, is eligible to apply for the 2025 Graduate Teaching Award for Independent Instruction.
Timeline
October 15th — First-Round Applications Due (submit application via the link below)
December 5 — Finalists Selected; Candidates Notified
February 1 — Finalist Portfolios Due (submit via link provided by email)
March 10 — Winners Selected; Candidates Notified
April 24, 2025 — Winners Honored at University Awards Ceremony
First Round Application
Applications are due no later than 11:59PM and deadlines are listed under the timeline.
The initial application must include the following four items to be considered complete:
- A completed application form.
- A summary of the following areas (1-2 paragraphs per area), attached to the application form:
- Brief statement of teaching philosophy
- Description of course, learning outcomes, and students
- Example(s) of evidence-based practices used in the course
- Evidence of teaching effectiveness, including instructor effectiveness and course quality mean scores from student evaluations
- Evidence of rapport with students
Please submit your response as a single PDF file using this file name format: Lastname_Firstname_independent_instruction.pdf
To apply, click the APPLY link, complete the application form, and attach your summary.
Second Round Application Materials
If you are selected as a finalist, you will have two months to put together a teaching portfolio of up to 25 pages. Please do not exceed this page limit. If you submit a longer portfolio, the Committee will consider only the first 25 pages.
The portfolio will be submitted through a link provided to finalists by email. Portfolios are due no later than 11:59 pm and deadlines are listed under the timeline.
Please include the following components in your portfolio:
- Teaching philosophy
- Course syllabus
- Sample assignment or lesson plan incorporating evidence-based practices
- Evidence of teaching effectiveness, including all three of the following:
- Evidence of student learning (e.g., anonymized student work with feedback, grade distributions, anonymized reflections from students about their learning)
- Official copies of your instructor and course evaluation results for the relevant course (instructions here)
- Classroom observation feedback form completed by a faculty member who observed your class
Review of Application Materials
We recognize that outstanding teaching can take many forms, that it looks differently in different disciplines, and that it can be presented in different ways. When evaluating your Teaching Portfolio, the committee will look for evidence of a coherent teaching philosophy exemplified by classroom practices, thoughtful use of evidence-based approaches, evidence of teaching effectiveness, and strong teacher-student rapport.