Jan Sjölund awarded Teacher of the Year

A committed teacher who is inspiring, responsive and communicative in his teaching. As a result, Jan Sjölund has been named Teacher of the Year by the students at University of Gävle.

Jan Sjölund is a lecturer in Swedish and teaches writing courses at the University. The motivation for the award states that he is awarded it because he "has shown an incredible commitment as a teacher, both in his field of education with very engaging and inspiring courses and lectures."

– I am honestly very happy, proud and surprised! I enjoy teaching and meeting the students so much and this is such a nice confirmation that at least quite a few students appreciate that meeting as much as I do, says Jan Sjölund.

"It is a quietly dramatic place"

He is also a freelance journalist and has worked as a reporter for several newspapers and Swedish Radio. He has published poetry collections at Albert Bonniers publishing house and now works with investigative journalism alongside his work at the University of Gävle.

It is the students who drive him forward in his work as a teacher.

– Meeting and acknowledging people in that zone where their writing is going on and where text is created is constantly fascinating. It is a quietly dramatic place where lives are changed and stories are born. It's also great to be able to teach communication at a time when the map of the world is being redrawn from within by constant technological revolutions in the field of communication. The students force me to stay focused and work hard all the time, and that's good, says Jan Sjölund.

Text: Anna Sällberg