Nyan-Ping Bi, Senior Lecturer in Chinese language, was honored on June 9th at the University of Washington's 46th-annual Awards of Excellence ceremony at Meany Hall where she received the coveted Distinguished Teaching Award. This award, which is given each year to just seven faculty members (five from the Seattle campus, and one each from UW Bothell and Tacoma), recognizes those individuals who demonstrate "mastery of subject matter, enthusiasm and innovation in the teaching and learning process, ability to engage students both within and outside the classroom, ability to inspire indepdendent and original thinking in students and to stimulate students to do creative work, and innovations in course and curriculum design." Winning the award also comes with the induction into the UW's Teaching Academy, which makes Bi eligible to further enhance excellence in teaching and learning at the UW through participation in a variety of Academy-sponsored projects and events.
UW President Ana Mari Cauce and Provost and Executive Vice President Jerry Baldasty presented the awards at the ceremony, and the following description of Bi's pedagogical talents and accomplishments is based on their remarks:
"Nyan-Ping is not a good teacher; she is a great teacher. Not a moment is wasted in her classroom. She has the students moving, working, speaking, listening and reacting. She is always moving and thinking. Nyan-Ping is a dynamo."
As her students can attest, she has a tangible and meaningful impact on lives. For example, one of her fourth-year Chinese students is now working at a company that exports wine to China. She is using Chinese every day at work and credits Nyan-Ping with changing her life.
One of her colleagues said of her, 'My litmus test is: Would I want my children to take this course with this instructor? I wish my children could study with someone like Nyan-Ping in their lifetimes, partly for the pure educational benefit and partly just to be inspired by seeing someone who is great at something doing it.'"
For more information about the UW's honors and awards, please visit their website. UW Today also posted a news item covering the ceremony on their page.