NSW/ACT Promoting Excellence Network
The NSW/ACT Promoting Excellence Network (PEN) is an OLT-funded network of academic development and support staff from participating universities across NSW and the ACT. Over the funding period 2011-13, it set itself a number of goals relating to the consolidation of the network and its effectiveness for members and other stakeholders; the cultivation of network members’ leadership capacities and roles within and beyond their institutions; and the development of resources that support the recognition and reward of quality teaching.
These objectives were met partly through a benchmarking project which focussed on teaching award support processes at participating institutions. Using a benchmarking template adapted from CADAD (the Council of Australian Directors of Academic Development) to carry out self and peer assessment, network members investigated their own institutional award support processes and then met with partner institutions to compare the results. The benchmarking process yielded both areas for review and improvement at network members' own universities, and a collection of best practice exemplars for supporting the teaching award process.
Resources associated with this exercise, including the documents used to carry out the benchmarking and the collection of best practice exemplars, are available below, for use by academic development units beyond the network (with acknowledgement where appropriate).
List of NSW/ACT PEN member institutions: