Dr Denizci Guillet joined the University as Assistant Professor in August 2007. Known by her students as “Dr D”, she excels as both a researcher and as a teacher, believing there is value in knowledge only when it is shared with others. Brimming with creativity, courage, and with an unshakable commitment to lifelong learning, Dr D is an enthusiastic, creative, and self-reliant teacher. Her mission is to enlighten and inspire. Using her classroom as a stage, she turns every lecture into a performance, engaging her students and exciting them with her passion. It is her belief that for lessons to be effective, her classroom needs to be a lively, interactive place where her students go with anticipation and eagerness. She creates a learning environment that is rich with enthusiasm and support, making the learning processes a joy for her students.
Dr D views each student as a unique individual with limitless capacity to learn when cultivated through a supportive teacher’s leadership. Dr D thus incorporates various assessment techniques into her classes to measure whether she is reaching all of her students. As Dr D’s teaching methodology has evolved, she remains open to new and innovative techniques such as on-line simulations, puzzles, interactive games, and real-time case studies.
Dr Denizci Guillet outlines her teaching philosophy through seven key points:
1. Have a passion to teach.
2. Be personable.
3. Reach out to students.
4. Understand your students rather than asking them to understand you.
5. Teach relevant and current content.
6. Provide timely and useful feedback.
7. Reward student efforts.
Dr D’s students laud her for providing them with a solid base for their prospective careers. Inspiring open-mindedness, and encouraging facing challenges with strength and courage, Dr D’s students create positive visions of their futures. Dr D endeavours to be a professor who makes the world a better place, believing that teachers affect eternity.
Dr D dedicates this award to all teachers, everywhere, who devote their lives to inspiring people and positively impacting people’s lives. Dr D finds teaching to be an extremely rewarding journey, a journey she intends to continue indefinitely. Of the many messages of thanks she receives from her students, the following best summarizes Dr Denizci Guillet:
“Drive, energy, enthusiasm. Dr D is the most energetic and motivated teacher I have ever met. She is like a high speed train you don't want to get off, but sometimes she likes to slow down to have more time to enjoy the scenery.”
