Católica recognises innovative teaching practices with the 2026 Pedagogical Innovation Award
During the National Opening Ceremony for the 2026–2027 academic year and the National Graduation Ceremony for graduates of the 2025–2026 academic year at the Universidade Católica Portuguesa, held on 23 October, the lecturers who won the second edition of the Pedagogical Innovation Award were honoured, highlighting their contribution to enhancing the quality, innovation and excellence of teaching practices.
The aim of the award is to encourage and recognise innovative teaching practices that promote the renewal of teaching and learning methodologies and reinforce the transformative role of higher education. Each winning entry receives 1,000 euros, to be reinvested in teaching, research or other educational initiatives.
Following a rigorous evaluation process conducted by an independent jury, first place was awarded to João Sequeira Carlos, Márcia Lopes, Vítor Veríssimo, Ricardo Mexia, Rita Abril and Nuno Florêncio, from the Católica Medical School, for their project “Integrated and Multimodal Curriculum Design for Medical Training in Primary Health Care (CSP)”. Second place went to Ângela Pereira, from the Faculty of Philosophy and Social Sciences, Braga Campus, for the project “Innovating to Learn in Developmental Psychology”. Third place was awarded to Anabela Rodrigues, from the same Faculty, for the project “Checkpoint PTO: an active learning pathway”.
The projects stood out for their innovation, impact on learning and the quality of their public presentation, showcasing different approaches to pedagogical innovation. The project “Checkpoint PTO: an active learning journey” stood out for organising learning into “checkpoints” and “missions”, complemented by voluntary challenges that encourage creativity, autonomy and active student participation. Meanwhile, the practice developed by Ângela Pereira demonstrated the potential of the coherent integration of multiple active methodologies and feedback processes within a course module involving over a hundred students, whilst the project coordinated by João Sequeira Carlos distinguished itself through the creation of an integrated learning experience in a real clinical setting, providing students with a comprehensive overview of Primary Health Care.
The winners’ testimonials highlighted some of the key ideas that characterised this year’s awards. Anabela Rodrigues emphasised the importance of ongoing investment in teacher training and of reflecting on teaching practice. Ângela Pereira emphasised the need to value pedagogical excellence in higher education, arguing that innovation is possible even in large classes and that learning results from a shared endeavour between lecturers and students. Speaking on behalf of the winning team, João Sequeira Carlos highlighted the collaboration between different stakeholders in the academic community, pointing to collective work as a key factor in the development of a curricular innovation on this scale.
During the ceremony, Isabel Capeloa Gil, President of Católica, congratulated the winners and all the nominees, emphasising that the award serves as an incentive for pedagogical innovation and the adoption of student-centred approaches.
As part of this initiative, CLIL – Católica Learning Innovation Lab will launch the e-book “Compilation of Innovative Projects – UCP/2026 Pedagogical Innovation Award”, a publication that will bring together all eligible projects and highlight innovative teaching practices developed at the University. The publication will be available shortly, promoting the dissemination and sharing of good pedagogical practices within the academic community.