Four Liberal Arts and Sciences professors have been honored as 2001-2002 Master Teachers for their ability to challenge undergraduate students in the classroom.

Paul Canfield, Jeffrey Prater, Valerie Sheares and David Wallace won the award based on their teaching techniques to involve undergraduates in research and tasks reaching far beyond what one may expect from undergraduate students.

When a publisher wanted to meet with Prater, professor of music, to discuss a book he wrote, Prater was out of the country.

He instead left the meeting to one of his undergraduate students.

“[The undergraduate] blew us away she was so good,” Prater said.

“The publisher said he would have hired her on the spot if she wasn’t in school.”

Prater’s nomination stems from the many times he has included undergraduate students in his work as researchers, composers and even teachers.

“Since we have no graduate program, I have turned to my undergrads and treat them like graduate students,” he said. “They have a real willingness to work and ability to know what they are doing.”

Wallace, associate professor of English, has spent the last 10 years working with undergraduate students as part of his research about diversity, identity and literacy.

He is now bringing a team of undergraduate students together to research the ISU community with regard to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered and transexual students.

Wallace said working with undergraduates can be a learning experience for the professor.

“It’s a reality check. I think for academics, it is very easy to get caught up in our academic communities,” Wallace said. “Working with undergrads forces you to make connections with the lines of `real people.'”

Wallace said his past experiences have helped him understand college students and what it takes to be a better teacher.

“I started my professional career at a writing center that focused a lot of attention on undergrads,” he said. “It taught me that learning is not about presenting a body of information but about making connections with what students actually already know.”

Canfield, professor of physics and astronomy, was selected for not only involving undergraduates in all areas of his research, but for also being a mentor for the honors program since 1997. Many of his students have published papers in the leading academic journals.

Sheares, associate professor of chemistry, has left her mark on undergraduate students by taking many of her student researchers to national American Chemical Society meetings, where they are required to give poster presentations.

The four teachers will be planning teaching-method seminars and in-class demonstrations throughout the year to share their trade secrets with others.

Although they will be sharing their techniques with other instructors, Prater said he feels there are a lot of teachers that have great teaching abilities.

“I know so many exquisite teachers on this campus – why and how I was singled out is beyond me, but I am very glad to be honored in this way,” he said. “I’d like to look at this award as a tribute to undergrad students who made this possible.”