Booske, Webster honored at E-Day 2000

John H. Booske (14K JPG)

Known by students and faculty to inspire exploration into his field of study, Professor John Booske is a recipient of the 2000 Benjamin Smith Reynolds Award for Excellence in Teaching Engineering Students. Since he joined the department in 1990, his dedication to instruction is continually exhibited through his experiments in improving student learning and his own teaching.

Booske actively engages students in interactive discussions and thought-provoking questions and makes electromagnetic engineering relevant by illustrating its applications.

Computers and web media for in-class presentations aid Booske's creative instruction. He has created automated drills to help students develop fluency in mathematics and basic electromagnetic concepts. As part of this effort, Booske and Assistant Professor Susan Hagness are leading a proposal to develop a template for UW-Madison to implement computer-based precision teaching.

Booske also began an unconventional, yet tremendously successful, plan for teaching the first three courses in electromagnetics. He experimented with a new, hands-on method involving designing, constructing, testing and evaluating projects to illustrate the principles of engineering. This method shows students that even simple problems can deviate considerably from the original plan to the physical application, thus encouraging them to fully explore every facet of a project.

In addition to receiving the Chancellor's Distinguished Teaching Award and being elected Fellow of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Teaching Academy, Booske has received accolades from student groups, electrical engineering fraternities and other organizations.

John G. Webster (13K JPG)

Professor John G. Webster has brought many innovative ideas to the College of Engineering during the past 32 years. His successful teaching style and ability to communicate through writing garnered him a 2000 Benjamin Smith Reynolds Award for Excellence in Teaching Engineers.

Webster made many contributions to ECE in the past and now plays a major role in the Department of Biomedical Engineering. He helped lay the groundwork for the new department and has developed courses in design and bioinstrumentation.

Webster is best known for his ability to create and implement successful teaching techniques and cutting-edge advancements in education. His ability to explain complex information leads to imaginative lectures. He also offers students the opportunity to work together in small groups, emulating the setting found in industry. This group learning allows students freedom to explore and test the elements of engineering, while Webster acts as a consultant to answer questions and decide whether a team has completed the projects successfully.

Webster is also committed to teaching through writing. He is one of the most distinguished educators in the fields of medical instrumentation and biomedical engineering. His textbook, Medical Instrumentation: Application and Design, is the most widely used textbook in biomedical engineering.

Among Webster's many honors are the Theo C. Pilkington Outstanding Educator Award from the American Society for Engineering Education, the UW-Madison Chancellor's Distinguished Teaching Award and the Holdridge Award for Excellence in Teaching from the UW-Madison Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.