International Higher Education Teacher Award ^2024/25

In teaching, Petr Soukup he has been using modern methods for a long time, which include: 1) teaching is based on analyses and presentations of real sociological data from surveys; 2) both textbooks authored by the teacher and complete supplementary materials (presentations, data, video recordings created by the teacher) are available online to students for study; 3) the teaching is completely recorded (lectures and seminars) and the recordings are accessible to students, or selected recordings are accessible online; 4) creating and editing items on Wikipedia together with students. Point 1) From the bachelor's level, data from sociological surveys are exclusively used for teaching. This data is also used by students for the preparation of their theses, for testing learned skills, including taking the state exam in data analysis. Thanks to the use of this approach, graduates of FSV UK are well prepared for research practice and are among the best in the field. Point 2) The teaching uses classic teaching texts (Petr Soukup is author or coauthor of 3 big textbooks), electronic material (presentation, document with assignment of practice tasks) is also prepared for each teaching unit on a shared disk, plus accompanying recordings with repetition and expansion of the material. The platforms Moodle, Google Drive and Youtube are used for electronic materials. Point 3) All teaching is recorded and accessible to students via Google Drive. Petr Soukup also regularly contributes to two YouTube channels ((https://www.youtube.com/@petrsoukup9854 and https://www.youtube.com/@ISSfsvUK ). These two accounts are followed by more than 1.8 th. subscribers and include more than 220 recordings. The total number of views of these recordings is now about 290 th. Point 4) Together the students of the course Introduction to Sociology, he creates entries on the Czech and Slovak Wikipedia in the field of sociology. In total more than two hundreds of articles have been created or modified and the quality of this open cognitive resource has improved. Students can learn academic work (research, citation) by this practice and some will also become long-term contributors to Wikipedia. In addition to teaching using innovative approaches, Petr Soukup also organizes educational seminars and summer and winter schools, which are attended not only by students. Petr Soukup's courses have long been among the highest rated in student evaluations.

Methodology

The basis for the teaching approach is, of course, knowledge of pedagogical science and didactics. Research in this area is also used, especially studies focused on the use of modern and digital approaches. Specifically, research studies focused on Charles University students during the COVID period and after its end are also conducted. Based on this, clear recommendations regarding examples of good teaching practice were established. After that, different procedures are tested in teaching and it is determined whether they work in different types of subjects (according to content, type of teaching, etc.). According to subsequent evaluations by students (questionnaire surveys, group discussions), optimal teaching approaches are chosen and these are further adjusted according to student reactions. Study success, which is one of the main goals, is also continuously monitored. It can be concluded that the search for optimal teaching methods is a never-ending process, i.a. also due to the development of technologies supporting education and also due to changes in fluency (generation X, Y Z, etc.).

Tools, equipment, technology used

In teaching, I use existing platforms and try to connect them. From the offer of Google tools, we mainly use Google disc (complete materials for the subjects including teaching recordings), Google forms (surevyes and data collection), for online/hybrid teaching most often use the MS Teams environment. We also use the YouTube platform for videos intended for the wider public. The basic structure of the course with links to other materials is typically provided by Moodle (the standard environment and recommendend tool at Charles University). Students also use the Wikipedia platform to create items, they work within the national project Students write Wikipedia.

Outcomes and outputs, main results

Thanks to the use of various modern (digital) tools, the following results were achieved: 1) students have significantly improved in the area of ​​knowledge and skills in the taught courses (this is proven by empirical evidence based on comparable test tasks). 2) students are more satisfied with the teaching and have a lower rate of leaving the university or the field of study 3) increased interest in follow-up studies (master's and doctoral) focused on the taught area. Based on the results, we also plan to prepare training for other teachers so that they can comprehensively use digital tools that suit the current generations of students. This training will be conducted as a series of practical seminars and each instructor will prepare teaching materials at the end.

Lessons learnt

Based on personal experience and the experience of the entire institute, the following recommendations apply: 1) Teaching must always be reflected at all levels and news in this field must be constantly monitored (for this purpose, it is advisable to have a specialist at the workplace or at the university). 2) In the case that some procedures do not work properly, you need to admit it and stop using them. 3) Constant feedback from students is needed, it is far from enough to have only questionnaires with teaching evaluations, without in-depth discussions but also informal discussions with student associations, it is not possible to learn about problems in teaching and suggestions for possible improvements. 4) It is necessary to introduce a system that supports quality teaching. The currently emphasized aspect of the research university often suppresses teaching as secondary and unimportant, employee remuneration is often conducted as a mechanical counting of scientific publications and their quality. It is necessary to appreciate teaching activities, especially excellent ones, and emphasize that quality teaching is the basis for quality university research. 5) Last but not least, it is necessary to educate employees in the field of teaching from the beginning of their careers and offer them forms of consultation, supervision and other tools for career growth in the field of education.

Adaptability and sustainability of the best practice (for other institutions)

From the point of view of the tools we use, sustainability is ensured, they are either completely free or for symbolic fees, these are partly also tools used outside the academic sphere. Their development also takes place, which supports their sustainability. Implementation requires that people are always available to develop colleagues' teaching competencies. The optimal and sustainable practice is to create informal learning centers that consist of the best teachers. They then pass on their know-how and observations from professional studies to others. Of course, sustainability also requires institutional and financial support, without which further development of the area is not possible.

Promotion of best practice

We are currently preparing a series of educational seminars for the employees of our institute. A working group for the quality of education operates at the level of the entire university, which collects examples of good practice in teaching and introduces them to workplaces throughout the university.

Scope and impact

• Course/department level
• Faculty level
• Institutional level
• National level

6.1 Digitalization

• Outstanding, innovative, excellent practices of online / blended / hybrid learning
• Innovative, novel methodology in using digital tools/devices in teaching
• Innovative use of digital administration tools

Reasoning: Digital elements in teaching bring many advantages for students. The first advantage is that they will learn to use platforms that are quite common today (Google, Microsoft) and learn to use applications beyond the scope of normal education (shared drives, online communication). Thanks to the use of digital tools in teaching, students also use these tools for cooperation (shared documents) and also when preparing student final theses. Thanks to digital teaching, students will also learn a gentle way of life, when there is no need to print documents, use printed books, etc. Working with digital technologies is more natural for current generations of students than working with other types of materials, so it is natural that teaching containing these elements is more interesting for them. Students can also help teachers, at our institute we also use students to train teachers (e.g. on the YouTube platform). Thanks to this activity, students feel much more involved in the learning process.

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6.2 Internationalization

• NOT RELEVANT

Reasoning:

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6.3 Inclusion and diversity, universal design

• Innovative teaching methodology for inclusion and meet diverse student needs

Reasoning: In particular, thanks to the digitization of all materials and recordings from classes and additional materials in the form of recordings, students can individualize the pace of their study preparation. They have the ability to go back, stop, skip, and this makes their education significantly more efficient.

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6.4 Sustainability

• NOT RELEVANT

Reasoning:

3.3 Public contact datas

Name	Email address	Website
Petr Soukup	soukup@fsv.cuni.cz