As a teacher I aim to encourage active learning by creating a diverse, inclusive environment which is respectful to all backgrounds and identities. The teaching methods should reflect that by also being diverse, to accommodate different types of learning and participation including a variety of activities and grading methods.
Teaching experience
Background
I have theoretical background in education, and hold a degree which qualifies me to teach in primary and secondary education. I have briefly worked as a science and biology teacher in these settings. I have also helped to create and structure syllabi and classes, as a voluntary teacher to children and teenagers. My main academic teaching background however pertains to my experiences as a teaching assistant in the University of Maryland.
Teaching Assistanships
Discussion teaching assistant
As a discussion teaching assistant, I was able to experience different ways of keeping students engaged in unfamiliar topics. I led two discussion sections in Pollinators in Crisis, a course for non-biology majors teaching the importance of pollinators to the world. I was glad to have more liberty for participating in the structure of the course, and help adapt the syllabus to teach the class remotely. During meetings with the instructor and the other teaching assistant we discussed innovative methods to keep the students engaged with their projects and with the class. We could implement more hands-on strategies, such as participating in iNaturalist projects (in 2020 and 2021), so that the students would be able to observe and learn about pollinators and plants in their surroundings. This course has showed me that students thrive from active learning and can develop interests in new topics through project based learning.
Lab teaching assistant
Active learning also played a role in teaching laboratory sections. I was a lab teaching assistant in two courses: Human Anatomy and Physiology and The World of Biology. In these courses, I guided students to perform experiments and analyze results. I realized that many times the instructions and background knowledge for the classes were not as clear to the students as they were after the lab sessions. This confirmed that students could show a much clearer understanding of concepts after applying them.
As a discussion teaching assistant, I was able to experience different ways of keeping students engaged in unfamiliar topics. I led two discussion sections in Pollinators in Crisis, a course for non-biology majors teaching the importance of pollinators to the world. I was glad to have more liberty for participating in the structure of the course, and help adapt the syllabus to teach the class remotely. During meetings with the instructor and the other teaching assistant we discussed innovative methods to keep the students engaged with their projects and with the class. We could implement more hands-on strategies, such as participating in iNaturalist projects (in 2020 and 2021), so that the students would be able to observe and learn about pollinators and plants in their surroundings. This course has showed me that students thrive from active learning and can develop interests in new topics through project based learning.
Lab teaching assistant
Active learning also played a role in teaching laboratory sections. I was a lab teaching assistant in two courses: Human Anatomy and Physiology and The World of Biology. In these courses, I guided students to perform experiments and analyze results. I realized that many times the instructions and background knowledge for the classes were not as clear to the students as they were after the lab sessions. This confirmed that students could show a much clearer understanding of concepts after applying them.