The Cutting Edge of Teaching, Learning, and Education at the Technion

Earlier this month, the Technion held its annual Outstanding Faculty Awards Ceremony, recognizing excellence in teaching. As in previous years, the recipients were selected based on a combination of qualitative and quantitative measures, including an analysis of student evaluation surveys. Faculty members ranking in the top four percent received certificates of recognition. At the same time, those who have earned this distinction for ten consecutive years were also awarded the title of Consistently Outstanding Lecturer. The ceremony also included the presentation of the Chillag Award for Outstanding Teaching Associates.

Technion President Prof. Uri Sivan congratulated the award recipients, saying, “Many of our faculty members are outstanding—but you are cutting edge. You are the lecturers who set the standard for the entire Technion community. Today, we present you with certificates recognizing your excellence in teaching. Still, I have no doubt that the greatest reward for each of you is the respect and appreciation of your students—the knowledge that you have, even in some small way, shaped their world and given them moments that will remain with them throughout their lives.”

The ceremony was hosted by Prof. Alon Grinberg Dana of the Wolfson Faculty of Chemical Engineering, who explained that the awards recognize faculty members whose educational achievements and dedicated contributions to teaching and learning have distinguished them among their peers. During the event, Prof. Yuval Garini, Executive Vice President for Innovation and Industry Relations, delivered a lecture titled “DNA Nanostructures for Improving Health.”

Speaking on behalf of the award recipients, Prof. Assaf Marom, head of the Laboratory for Human Anatomy and Evolution at the Ruth and Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, quoted Nobel Prize-winning Israeli author S.Y. Agnon: “Science is a kingdom unto itself, yet it holds no golden scepter.” He continued: “Agnon’s words also highlight the humility required in the realm of science. Science alone does not possess the power to transform knowledge into responsibility, expertise into integrity, or success into personal excellence. No regulation can require a person to be an inspiring teacher, generous, or devoted beyond working hours. In our classrooms, we meet young people filled with hope, who seek not only to expand their knowledge but also to understand what kind of person that knowledge obliges them to become.”