A goal for me as a teacher is to stimulate and encourage thinking and challenge the students just enough so they will experience a beneficial and interesting learning situation. I want to meet students where they are, which can be achieved in many different ways. For instance, at the beginning of a course I want to learn what motivates the students, what they hope to learn, and how they think they learn best. Second, I strive to learn the students' names, even in a large course. This is important for creating an open and good communication and for students to feel that they are seen as individuals, not just being one in the crowd. Finally, I introduce my expectations, goals, teaching philosophy and myself. I address the importance of reflection, conversation, and evaluation as a natural part of the learning process, which are achieved by continuous open communication, rather than at the end of a course.
To make learning achievable for as many students as possible I like to use different learning modalities and technologies, including interactive lecture, team-based discussions, applied activities both in the field and in the classroom, and writing- and reading assignments. I use both in-class and out-of-class assignments to ensure that students repeatedly engage with the material. For instance, I like to introduce information by using real life examples from news, popular, and peer reviewed articles or video talks (e.g., TED or HHMI Biointeractive). I assign these readings or videos, along with a "writing-five-comments/questions'' submission, before class. This strategy has worked extremely well and it has allowed me to expand on topics in class in a number of ways to ensure that each student is able to understand the information. I highly encourage dialogue in the classroom by asking a lot of questions and use team discussions as a means to dig deeper into interesting or challenging topics. An example of this was expressed in a student's evaluation:
"I have enjoyed all her classes, I like how the students have to figure out the question before she answers, I feel that is a great way to really understand something. I also like that she encourages us to explain things to our peers that they don't understand because it not only helps the peer but helps to better yourself as well. She has a lot of great and different studying techniques."
I encourage students to work both in teams as well as individually, and I am considering assignments as part of a process rather than a pass or fail activity. With this aim, I like to use various forms of assessments to cover different learning styles. As an example, in most of my classes I use a two-part exam where the first part is a take-home essay; the students write four to five essays depending on the content structure of a course. They need to incorporate and explain several given keywords in their own words and give specific examples from the literature including citations, to achieve an excellent (A) score. The second part is a more traditional in-class closed book exam with different types of questions. This has been remarkably successful and students have expressed that they are learning more by being challenged with higher level thinking writing the essays, as well as increased retention of the basic concepts and key processes after the
in-class exam. Many of my past students have expressed their renewed and increased interest in learning after writing the essays; for example a student in my genetics course wrote:
"As I am working to complete this exam, I thought I would send you a quick email about my thoughts. I think this is the best exam I have ever taken. I have never learned so much from preparing for any other type of exam. It does not feel like school work, it feels like I am learning about some really cool stuff. The essays are not that difficult in themselves, but this leaves so much room for us to explore more areas. I think when an essay is too hard or requires too much, we focus more on finding the answer rather than being truly interested in the topic. I have never been a fan of this revolutionary `active' learning, but I think I am changing my mind if this is how it works. Just wanted to say thank you for the opportunity to be inspired by learning again."
Another strategy I use in many of my current courses is a larger experiential team project. For example in general biology, the students investigate what influences plant growth by manipulating the soil or light regimes. In my forest management course, the teams select a forestry or natural resource issue and provide an evaluation of the issue in collaboration with the National Forest Service in the region. At the end of the projects, the teams present their findings as a poster presentation, where invited faculty and collaborators attend. The teams are assessed in several steps including peer-to-peer evaluation of each others effort in preparation, collaboration, and participation.
To illustrate my approach to classroom teaching, on a typical day in any of my courses, I would begin with an overview of what we will
cover, followed by a short discussion of a reading or video the students were assigned to do before class. This sets the stage well for activities and short lectures on anything that is unclear. For example, since genetics is a subject that affects our everyday
lives, it is relatively easy to engage students by using real life examples and problems. Some examples I have used are: How different
are we humans? Why do we have blood types? Why and how did lactose tolerance arise in humans? How can relatedness and DNA be used to solve criminal cases? Are genetically modified foods safe? Similar as in the Forest management course described above, the students in my genetics course worked in teams on a larger biotechnology project that they reported as a poster presentation at the end of the course. I was inspired to teach genetics in this innovative way by Dr. Rosemary Redfield at the University of British Columbia. In her paper, "Why do we have to learn this stuff? -- A new genetics for 21st century students'' (2012), she urges faculty to change how we teach genetics and other science courses to undergraduates. She suggests to have a human focus and to rearrange the content for it to be more useful to students, which I also have done and have found to be successful and very effective in both my genetics and other
biology courses.
The excitement I have for biology is contagious, which I can notice in my students' increased desire to learn as well as their eagerness to
apply their new-found knowledge. As a teacher, I can have life-long effects on my students, influencing their sense of inclusion, well-being, academic pathways, and careers. Teaching can be immensely challenging, however, I feel it can also be an exceptionally gratifying. I consider knowledge to be one of the strongest assets a person can have and it is something that can never be taken away. I believe that the best way to learn is to teach others. In the process of teaching students, the concepts are further ingrained in the teacher.
I work closely with students and incorporating their interests into my own, especially through the inclusion of undergraduates in smaller research projects. I want to encourage the use of experiential learning in the classes I am teaching as well as with students I mentor. I anticipate to develop new integrated approaches to place-based or service learning, involving industry, governmental agencies, and
research scientists in the future. By involving students in ongoing projects outside of the classroom, they build important skills in performing research projects and work with others. In combination with hands-on training in their field and the courses they are taking, students will be well equipped to find answers to ecological questions in the classroom and beyond.
Reference
Redfield RJ (2012) "Why Do We Have to Learn This Stuff?'' A New Genetics for 21st Century Students. PLoS Biol 10(7): e1001356.
To make learning achievable for as many students as possible I like to use different learning modalities and technologies, including interactive lecture, team-based discussions, applied activities both in the field and in the classroom, and writing- and reading assignments. I use both in-class and out-of-class assignments to ensure that students repeatedly engage with the material. For instance, I like to introduce information by using real life examples from news, popular, and peer reviewed articles or video talks (e.g., TED or HHMI Biointeractive). I assign these readings or videos, along with a "writing-five-comments/questions'' submission, before class. This strategy has worked extremely well and it has allowed me to expand on topics in class in a number of ways to ensure that each student is able to understand the information. I highly encourage dialogue in the classroom by asking a lot of questions and use team discussions as a means to dig deeper into interesting or challenging topics. An example of this was expressed in a student's evaluation:
"I have enjoyed all her classes, I like how the students have to figure out the question before she answers, I feel that is a great way to really understand something. I also like that she encourages us to explain things to our peers that they don't understand because it not only helps the peer but helps to better yourself as well. She has a lot of great and different studying techniques."
I encourage students to work both in teams as well as individually, and I am considering assignments as part of a process rather than a pass or fail activity. With this aim, I like to use various forms of assessments to cover different learning styles. As an example, in most of my classes I use a two-part exam where the first part is a take-home essay; the students write four to five essays depending on the content structure of a course. They need to incorporate and explain several given keywords in their own words and give specific examples from the literature including citations, to achieve an excellent (A) score. The second part is a more traditional in-class closed book exam with different types of questions. This has been remarkably successful and students have expressed that they are learning more by being challenged with higher level thinking writing the essays, as well as increased retention of the basic concepts and key processes after the
in-class exam. Many of my past students have expressed their renewed and increased interest in learning after writing the essays; for example a student in my genetics course wrote:
"As I am working to complete this exam, I thought I would send you a quick email about my thoughts. I think this is the best exam I have ever taken. I have never learned so much from preparing for any other type of exam. It does not feel like school work, it feels like I am learning about some really cool stuff. The essays are not that difficult in themselves, but this leaves so much room for us to explore more areas. I think when an essay is too hard or requires too much, we focus more on finding the answer rather than being truly interested in the topic. I have never been a fan of this revolutionary `active' learning, but I think I am changing my mind if this is how it works. Just wanted to say thank you for the opportunity to be inspired by learning again."
Another strategy I use in many of my current courses is a larger experiential team project. For example in general biology, the students investigate what influences plant growth by manipulating the soil or light regimes. In my forest management course, the teams select a forestry or natural resource issue and provide an evaluation of the issue in collaboration with the National Forest Service in the region. At the end of the projects, the teams present their findings as a poster presentation, where invited faculty and collaborators attend. The teams are assessed in several steps including peer-to-peer evaluation of each others effort in preparation, collaboration, and participation.
To illustrate my approach to classroom teaching, on a typical day in any of my courses, I would begin with an overview of what we will
cover, followed by a short discussion of a reading or video the students were assigned to do before class. This sets the stage well for activities and short lectures on anything that is unclear. For example, since genetics is a subject that affects our everyday
lives, it is relatively easy to engage students by using real life examples and problems. Some examples I have used are: How different
are we humans? Why do we have blood types? Why and how did lactose tolerance arise in humans? How can relatedness and DNA be used to solve criminal cases? Are genetically modified foods safe? Similar as in the Forest management course described above, the students in my genetics course worked in teams on a larger biotechnology project that they reported as a poster presentation at the end of the course. I was inspired to teach genetics in this innovative way by Dr. Rosemary Redfield at the University of British Columbia. In her paper, "Why do we have to learn this stuff? -- A new genetics for 21st century students'' (2012), she urges faculty to change how we teach genetics and other science courses to undergraduates. She suggests to have a human focus and to rearrange the content for it to be more useful to students, which I also have done and have found to be successful and very effective in both my genetics and other
biology courses.
The excitement I have for biology is contagious, which I can notice in my students' increased desire to learn as well as their eagerness to
apply their new-found knowledge. As a teacher, I can have life-long effects on my students, influencing their sense of inclusion, well-being, academic pathways, and careers. Teaching can be immensely challenging, however, I feel it can also be an exceptionally gratifying. I consider knowledge to be one of the strongest assets a person can have and it is something that can never be taken away. I believe that the best way to learn is to teach others. In the process of teaching students, the concepts are further ingrained in the teacher.
I work closely with students and incorporating their interests into my own, especially through the inclusion of undergraduates in smaller research projects. I want to encourage the use of experiential learning in the classes I am teaching as well as with students I mentor. I anticipate to develop new integrated approaches to place-based or service learning, involving industry, governmental agencies, and
research scientists in the future. By involving students in ongoing projects outside of the classroom, they build important skills in performing research projects and work with others. In combination with hands-on training in their field and the courses they are taking, students will be well equipped to find answers to ecological questions in the classroom and beyond.
Reference
Redfield RJ (2012) "Why Do We Have to Learn This Stuff?'' A New Genetics for 21st Century Students. PLoS Biol 10(7): e1001356.