Teaching Portfolio |
Teaching Philosophy
It wasn’t until my junior year of college that I realized how important my education was towards my future success. Before then, I loved science simply for the fact that it was the field in which I could interact with wildlife. Thanks to two amazing professors, I began to realize my potential in the field of Biology. It felt as if these professors had taken a personal interest in me when I, myself, had counted myself out. They were enthusiastic about the types of questions I was asking in class, and told me I had a knack for science. This encouraged me to take pride in understanding the basics so that I could ask more questions. Through the help of these professors, I became motivated to improve my grades so that I could continue my education and conduct my own research, asking and answering the important biological questions.
I wonder if I would be where I am now if it wasn’t for these professors. I am constantly reminded of everything they did for me now that I am a teacher. I realize that my classroom may be full of students who are unsure of their future just as I was. It is my hope that I am able to motivate these students just as my professors did for me. In doing so, my goals are to inspire students to appreciate Biology and develop an interest or enthusiasm for science outside of the classroom, regardless of their future career endeavors.
In order to teach students about the importance of science, I aim to create a fun, engaging and inclusive classroom for all students. In doing so, students may not remember all the content covered, but I hope they will remember how they felt when learning the material and towards science. I find that the best way to do this is to use straight lecturing only to introduce new concepts. The rest of the time, students will be actively learning through hands on interactions with specimens or working in groups to discuss in depth questions. Students from all backgrounds are able to work together and can bounce ideas off one another. This enables students to learn how to work with others who come from diverse backgrounds on a unifying theme, how Biology relates to their lives and can benefit their social development.
During such activities, I facilitate discussion by visiting individual groups and asking additional questions to assess their understanding. This allows me to chat with students on a more personal level. I have found that it’s during these group discussions I am best able to establish a strong rapport with the students. Over time, students begin asking me follow up questions, showing me that they not only understand the concepts, but that they are also interested in expanding their knowledge. Engaging with the students this way also gives me a sense as to where the they maybe struggling, whether inside or outside the classroom. It is important to me that I know where my students are coming from so that I can best provide them with resources for success.
As an amateur artist, I often utilize drawing media in order to best illustrate concepts to students. This is especially applicable to concepts in Biology in which we are discussing anatomy or physiological processes. When I find a method of illustrating concepts to students that really seems to stick, I adapt my drawings into worksheets that students can work through.
One aspect of my teaching that I am passionate about is facilitating an inclusive classroom. At the beginning of the term, I ask students to fill out note cards, in which they provide their name, nicknames, preferred pronouns, field of study, and something that they would like me to know about them. While they fill out this notecard, I give a brief description of who I am. While students fill out their cards, I tell them about who I am list some facts about me, including my preferred pronouns. I have seen that after leaving this question open-ended, students feel more comfortable to share with me. Students have revealed to me personal information about themselves, such as their preferred pronouns, medical conditions that may require them to leave class early, or their workload outside of class. I am then able to address these issues from the beginning, such as allowing students to step out to eat during lab if their blood sugar is too low. In addition, I think students feel more comfortable with me because I was able to share with them parts of my personal life.
By establishing this rapport with my students, I hope that they not only feel included in my classroom, but also feel comfortable approaching me with questions regarding their personal development in and outside the classroom. For instance, many of my students have expressed an interest in higher education or concerns about what to do after they graduate. I have been happy to discuss academic and non-academic avenues that I have personal experience with. I am honest with them and tell them about how my senior year of college, I also didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life. I tell them about how I took a nontraditional path by joining the Peace Corps. It is during this time I realized how much I loved teaching biology. I encourage students to look for opportunities such as this, where they can try something out before diving in.
I am an active member of a the Equity, Justice, and Inclusivity subcommittee, Decolonizing the Classroom. I help organize regular meetings and workshops in which we discuss methods for shifting classroom content to be more inclusive. Such transitions include but are not limited to: updating my slides to represent more people of color, opened sexual development lectures with acknowledgments of gender being a spectrum, introduce important non-cis white male scientists who have contributed to the field, and more.
I have had many students take some important next steps in their career. One of my students is now a lab member in my own lab. Another student I mentored has gone on to do her own research in genomics after I invited her to help me with my own project. These are just a few examples of some of my students contributing to the scientific field. However, I hope that my students will become successful contributors to society regardless of which field they wish to pursue. In doing so, I hope that they leave my class with a basic understanding of how important Biology is to their life. By creating a fun and inclusive classroom, I hope that students associate Biology with positive memories they will take with them in the future.
I wonder if I would be where I am now if it wasn’t for these professors. I am constantly reminded of everything they did for me now that I am a teacher. I realize that my classroom may be full of students who are unsure of their future just as I was. It is my hope that I am able to motivate these students just as my professors did for me. In doing so, my goals are to inspire students to appreciate Biology and develop an interest or enthusiasm for science outside of the classroom, regardless of their future career endeavors.
In order to teach students about the importance of science, I aim to create a fun, engaging and inclusive classroom for all students. In doing so, students may not remember all the content covered, but I hope they will remember how they felt when learning the material and towards science. I find that the best way to do this is to use straight lecturing only to introduce new concepts. The rest of the time, students will be actively learning through hands on interactions with specimens or working in groups to discuss in depth questions. Students from all backgrounds are able to work together and can bounce ideas off one another. This enables students to learn how to work with others who come from diverse backgrounds on a unifying theme, how Biology relates to their lives and can benefit their social development.
During such activities, I facilitate discussion by visiting individual groups and asking additional questions to assess their understanding. This allows me to chat with students on a more personal level. I have found that it’s during these group discussions I am best able to establish a strong rapport with the students. Over time, students begin asking me follow up questions, showing me that they not only understand the concepts, but that they are also interested in expanding their knowledge. Engaging with the students this way also gives me a sense as to where the they maybe struggling, whether inside or outside the classroom. It is important to me that I know where my students are coming from so that I can best provide them with resources for success.
As an amateur artist, I often utilize drawing media in order to best illustrate concepts to students. This is especially applicable to concepts in Biology in which we are discussing anatomy or physiological processes. When I find a method of illustrating concepts to students that really seems to stick, I adapt my drawings into worksheets that students can work through.
One aspect of my teaching that I am passionate about is facilitating an inclusive classroom. At the beginning of the term, I ask students to fill out note cards, in which they provide their name, nicknames, preferred pronouns, field of study, and something that they would like me to know about them. While they fill out this notecard, I give a brief description of who I am. While students fill out their cards, I tell them about who I am list some facts about me, including my preferred pronouns. I have seen that after leaving this question open-ended, students feel more comfortable to share with me. Students have revealed to me personal information about themselves, such as their preferred pronouns, medical conditions that may require them to leave class early, or their workload outside of class. I am then able to address these issues from the beginning, such as allowing students to step out to eat during lab if their blood sugar is too low. In addition, I think students feel more comfortable with me because I was able to share with them parts of my personal life.
By establishing this rapport with my students, I hope that they not only feel included in my classroom, but also feel comfortable approaching me with questions regarding their personal development in and outside the classroom. For instance, many of my students have expressed an interest in higher education or concerns about what to do after they graduate. I have been happy to discuss academic and non-academic avenues that I have personal experience with. I am honest with them and tell them about how my senior year of college, I also didn’t know what I wanted to do with my life. I tell them about how I took a nontraditional path by joining the Peace Corps. It is during this time I realized how much I loved teaching biology. I encourage students to look for opportunities such as this, where they can try something out before diving in.
I am an active member of a the Equity, Justice, and Inclusivity subcommittee, Decolonizing the Classroom. I help organize regular meetings and workshops in which we discuss methods for shifting classroom content to be more inclusive. Such transitions include but are not limited to: updating my slides to represent more people of color, opened sexual development lectures with acknowledgments of gender being a spectrum, introduce important non-cis white male scientists who have contributed to the field, and more.
I have had many students take some important next steps in their career. One of my students is now a lab member in my own lab. Another student I mentored has gone on to do her own research in genomics after I invited her to help me with my own project. These are just a few examples of some of my students contributing to the scientific field. However, I hope that my students will become successful contributors to society regardless of which field they wish to pursue. In doing so, I hope that they leave my class with a basic understanding of how important Biology is to their life. By creating a fun and inclusive classroom, I hope that students associate Biology with positive memories they will take with them in the future.
Teaching objectives and Strategies
My teaching objectives are to create a fun and inclusive classroom that students feel comfortable in. In doing so, students are open to ask questions in order to better understand the material. Students often work in groups so that they can practice working with others on complex material, better preparing them for their future careers. By working in groups, students are able to create a learning environment that fits their style. In doing so, students leave the classroom with a better appreciation for the material.
I use a variety of teaching strategies to address the concepts being covered in class. This ranges from lectures to running an experiment. I use lectures to introduce concepts, while providing the basis for biological processes. This provides a clear resource for students with useful videos, diagrams, and outline of the content being covered. I use the rest of class time to facilitate active learning. Students work hands on with material that helps them understand the broader implications of concepts.
While the activities and materials I provide are useful for student understanding, I believe that creating a fun and engaging atmosphere best facilitates a positive learning environment. By establishing a strong rapport with my students, I am able to increase their interest in the course and in learning. I use personal stories related to concepts being covered and humor to make science fun.
In addition to making science fun, I aim to have my students understand how the material being covered relates to their lives. This is done through experiential learning, such as running an experiment, or through group discussion. In lab, I have discussion questions that I ask groups of 2-5 students. These questions apply the concepts they just learned to real world examples, such as predicting how the material covered that week relates to human disease, the local environment, or charismatic species.
It is my aim to provide students with materials to develop their understanding. These resources are used as study material that can help students improve their basic understanding of biological processes. In addition, I work with students to ask harder more applicable questions to make connections to what the broader implications of the content. All of this is fulfilled through fun activities to encourage enthusiasm and the motivation to love science.
