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Leandra Best

DMD
Clinical Professor Emerita
Clinical Professor Emerita
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Office:
Rm: IRC 342 - 2194 Health Sciences Mall Vancouver, B. C. V6T 1Z3



Research Areas:

Education-related scholarly activities: Enhancing student learning experiences through curriculum innovation, assessment, case writing and faculty development.

Teaching Areas:

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W. Leandra Best, DMD, retired from UBC in December 2019 and is now a Clinical Professor Emerita in Oral Health Sciences. She is a curriculum consultant contractor and chair of the DMD Program Curriculum Review and Program Evaluation Task Force (2023-24).  
 
Leandra joined the Faculty of Dentistry in 1999 as a part-time instructor in fixed prosthodontics and quickly became involved in many components of the dental curriculum. As DMD Coordinator for years one and two (2003-2011), she worked closely with the Faculty of Medicine on the delivery of the joint problem-based learning (PBL) pedagogy. She co-authored numerous PBL cases, dental applied learning experience (DALE) cases and developed Dentistry's PBL Tutor Training Workshop and the PBL Orientation for students. She received a number of grants supporting her keen interest in dental education research, specifically in the areas of assessment, development of curriculum and students' learning skills. She presented posters and workshops at dental education conferences, both nationally and internationally. 
 
Leandra received a number of awards including the Dentistry Teaching Award (2004), the Killam University Excellence in Teaching Award (2006), the 3M - ESPE ACFD National Teaching Award (2007) and the Award for Outstanding Leadership in Advancing Inter-professional Professional Development (2017). She was involved in UBC-wide faculty development workshops at the Centre for Teaching, Learning and Technology, the Faculty of Medicine and the UBC Campus PBL Network.  
 
Leandra has extensive knowledge of the DMD curriculum, having taught in all four years and through facilitating numerous collaborative curriculum projects with faculty. She was a UBC Dentistry faculty liaison on the American Dental Education Association Commission on Change and Innovation (ADEA CCI) for 10 years, the UBC representative on the Association of Canadian Faculties of Dentistry's Academic Affairs Committee, a Dentistry faculty representative on numerous UBC committees and within the Faculty of Dentistry. Leandra was elected a Fellow of the American College of Dentists (2013) and a Fellow of the International College of Dentists (2014) in recognition of services and devotion to the advancement of the science and art of Dentistry.  
 
As the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs (2011-2019), Leandra oversaw the DMD curriculum and its extensive curriculum renewal project, and the academic progress of DMD and DHDP students. She served as chair of the DMD Curriculum, Teaching and Effectiveness Subcommittee, the DMD and DHDP Academic Progress Committees, the DMD Academic Advisory Team and the Sub-committee on PBL for the DMD Admissions Committee.  
 
Leandra was promoted to Senior Associate Dean in 2017.