Teaching Excellence

Anatomy courses, by their very nature, can be tedious, requiring memorization of an overwhelming number of details. But when the subject is in the hands of an outstanding teacher, the material is fascinating, and students are engaged and inspired.

Tom Rost, professor of plant biology and associate dean in the Division of Biological Sciences, is clearly such a teacher. Students enrolled in his course, "Developmental Plant Anatomy," are quickly hooked by his use of both music and slides to relay information about plant structure and development. And they find relevance in the material when he recounts how an understanding of plant anatomy played key roles in solving real-life mysteries such as the Lindbergh-baby kidnaping case.

Above all, Rost's students learn that he genuinely cares about them. His personal touch is evident during the course's weekly six-hour laboratory, where he takes photographs of students to learn their names, and uses frequent quizzes to check for deeper understanding of the subject. Moreover, he personally trains students who have already taken the course to work as "peer proctors" in the laboratory, providing current students with additional help. Over the years he has trained and worked with more than 100 peer proctors.

In 25 years of teaching, Tom Rost has found that "the most important function of the instructor is to motivate students to learn, that is, to motivate them toward self-discovery."

Rost's exceptional teaching abilities were formally recognized this year when he received a 1997 Distinguished Teaching Award from the Davis Division of the Academic Senate. Nominations for the award are usually made by students. Up to four faculty awardees are selected following the review of extensive dossiers that document their teaching record and provide both a faculty and a student perspective of their teaching.

Rost is one of 11 division faculty members whose superb teaching earned the Distinguished Teaching Award since the honor was established in 1973. One division lecturer has received the Academic Federation Excellence in Teaching Award, created in 1991 to honor non-Academic Senate faculty members. Two faculty members in the division have received the UC Davis Prize for Undergraduate Teaching and Scholarly Achievement, which includes a substantial monetary award provided by the UC Davis Foundation. And three of the four recipients of the Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Research have been members of the division faculty.

DIVISION OF BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES TEACHING AWARD RECIPIENTS

UC Davis Prize for Undergraduate Teaching and Scholarly Achievement

*Department or section affiliation at the time of the award

**Named the Presidential Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Research from 1994 to 1996.