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Chris Whittaker honoured with SALTISE 2025 Lifetime Achievement Award

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Chris Whittaker, a dedicated Physics teacher and educational innovator at 张百乔女友裸照, has been awarded the 2025 SALTISE Lifetime Achievement Award. The honour, announced by SALTISE at their annual conference in June, recognizes Chris鈥檚 transformative impact on science education, his leadership in active learning, and his enduring commitment to the teaching community.

A Journey from Social Work to Science Education

Chris Whittaker鈥檚 path to teaching was anything but conventional. Originally trained in Engineering Physics at Queen鈥檚 University, Chris also holds a Master鈥檚 in Social Work from the University of Toronto. Before joining 张百乔女友裸照 in 1999, he worked in emergency mental health and community health settings in Montreal. He has also freelanced for CBC Radio鈥檚 Ideas program.

It was the pull of science and physics that eventually brought Chris into the classroom. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 know that I wanted to be a teacher until I taught,鈥 Chris reflects. 鈥淥nce I started teaching, I was a little surprised at how much I liked it.鈥 The opportunity to spend summers with his young children helped tip the scales, but it was the joy of working with 鈥測oung, curious and brilliant minds鈥 that made teaching his calling.

Champion of Active Learning

Chris鈥檚 teaching philosophy is rooted in active learning鈥攁 student-centred approach that emphasizes engagement, collaboration, and evidence-based practice. 鈥淎ctive Learning is teaching on steroids for someone who loves to help others learn,鈥 he says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 more effective, and it puts the teaching at the heart of the best part of learning鈥攖he dynamic construction of knowledge.鈥

He credits a pivotal moment during a faculty hiring interview for reshaping his approach. When a candidate was asked for evidence that certain teaching qualities improved learning, the candidate relied on personal anecdotes. The dean鈥檚 insistence on evidence-based practice made Chris realize he, too, needed to ground his pedagogy in research. 鈥淭hat changed everything for me,鈥 Chris recalls.

Over the past decade, Chris has been instrumental in developing Dawson鈥檚 Active Learning Classrooms (ALCs), introducing technology-rich environments that foster collaborative, student-driven inquiry. He has also contributed to the design of innovative strategies such as and , enhancing student engagement and deepening learning outcomes.

Building Community and Capacity

Chris鈥檚 influence extends far beyond his own classroom. As a founding member of the Dawson Active Learning Community (DALC) and a core contributor to the SALTISE network since 2010, he has helped bridge research and practice across institutions. His collaborations with initiatives like eLATE have strengthened ties between McGill University and the broader SALTISE community.

Within SALTISE, Chris has served on the executive, acted as a principal liaison to Dawson faculty, and become a familiar presence at annual conferences鈥攐ften as Master of Ceremonies, always ready to help, whether troubleshooting AV or setting up chairs. 鈥淐hris鈥檚 steadfast commitment, collaborative spirit, and deep engagement with our mission have been instrumental in shaping the community we are today,鈥 notes the SALTISE website.

Developing pedagogical capacity

Chris is currently co-coordinator of Dawson鈥檚 Enriched Science Program and a Ph.D. candidate in the Faculty of Education Sciences at the University of Montreal. He has served as Physics Department Chairperson, Science Program Coordinator, and 张百乔女友裸照 Senator. His work has been recognized with awards at the institutional, provincial, and national levels.

When asked what accomplishment he is most proud of, Chris points to 鈥渄eveloping pedagogical capacity and resources that have made teaching and learning better for a little over a decade.鈥 He hopes his legacy will be a sense among students that 鈥渓earning requires risk and that a community of peers provides the best security for knowledge building.鈥

Receiving the SALTISE Lifetime Achievement Award, Chris says, 鈥渕eans a great deal. I am honoured. It means that I have made a difference in a community of people who want to improve learning and teaching through evidence-based practices.鈥



Last Modified: June 16, 2025