A project promoting experiential learning as a way to help students master manufacturing theory took top honours at a poster competition at the University of Windsor-Oakland University Teaching and Learning Conference in Rochester, Michigan.

Victoria Townsend, a doctoral student of Industrial and Manufacturing Systems Engineering, tied with a faculty team from Oakland University to win the Dr. Wilbert J. McKeachie International Poster Prize for her poster, Road Trip! Building Meaningful Memories in an Experiential Continuum.

“I am glad that this poster highlighted my students’ experiences,” Townsend said. “I am especially grateful that I had the chance to share these experiences with people from different universities across Canada and the US.”

The McKeachie prize is awarded to promote the importance and value of posters for the exploration of effective and innovative teaching and learning practices and the dissemination of research results. Presenters were encouraged to reconceptualize the typical poster session in creative ways in order to incorporate active learning approaches and interactive engagement with both poster and presenter. A combination of peer review and an international panel of judges selected the winners.

Oakland University welcomed more than 150 people from over 11 different institutions to their campus May 9 and 10 for the annual event. The poster session competition showcased 16 different projects. The conference is a joint initiative of the two universities, sponsored by both institutions’ provosts, and intended to foster collaboration and exchange about innovative and effective teaching among faculty, staff, and students.
For more information on the conference, visit www.uwindsor.ca/tlconf.