Melanie Wall
Te Whatu Kairangi Award
Relationships key for this innovative leader
Melanie Wall is Senior Tutor in Te Kura Mātai Taiao | School of Environment | Waipapa Taumata Rau | The University of Auckland.
Melanie is highly successful at employing innovative approaches to teach controversial curricula in class-based and online teaching contexts. She takes an active and relational approach to working with her learners, and combines the scholarship of teaching and learning with a values based approach. She skillfully uses Team Based Learning in a way that embraces respect, relevance, responsibility and reciprocity.
Over her career, Melanie’s teaching has had a positive impact on thousands of students while maintaining exceptionally high student satsifaction scores. Melanie is recognised as a leader in the University’s curriculum transformation through, for example, her co-leadership in the development of a compulsory first-year class expected to engage with 13,000 students per year. Learners value her classes greatly, “This has been my favourite class of all time!” one declared.
Her contribution to school, faculty, university and to Māori has been recognised through various awards. She has held a leadership role in the Learning and Teaching Innovation Group, fostered teaching excellence through the Ako Innovation Committee and mentored Professional Teaching Fellows.
A colleague commented, “Mel has been vital in mahi to expand mātauranga Māori and kaupapa Māori… and has led efforts to assist the Faculty to meet its Te Tiriti obligations.”