Ethos & Approach

Scaffold Meaningful, Connected Learning

Connecting to students’ existing interests and using examples from media and popular culture applies target concepts and theories in familiar contexts.

Cognitive approaches to learning pedagogy also suggest that embedding new learning within existing knowledge structures can enhance recall and future application, helping students use course information in other contexts and apply it more broadly to real-world problems.

Diverse Voices & Experiences

I prioritize bringing a range of expertise into my classroom through guest lectures, workshops, online videos, interactive activities, and even local field trips. I want students seek out multiple perspectives and hear from a variety of sources, as well as shine the limelight on a diverse range of experts.

PLUS, the drone of a lone lecturer is a challenge, especially for neurodivergent students and those with external demands on their cognitive resources. Switching things up, providing multiple avenues into the material, and breaking up our time together also helps with attention and retention.

Iterative & Incremental Successes

Understanding doesn’t happen over night, and skill development takes practice. That’s why I use a variety of assignment styles (short essays, creative responses, digital artifacts, critiques, memos), and design assessments which build upon each other to layer and reinforce learning.

Especially for large projects, regular feedback into works-in-progress and drafts build opportunities for incremental improvement as students develop.

Be Human & Transparent

Science and life involve failure. Sometimes lots of it. But formal education rarely prepares us adequately for these blows — or shows us how to manage when things go wrong. How students approach assignments, manage their time, and deal with stress and failure can make or break learning experiences and college success.

I actively model equitable and transparent interactions with students by communicating goals, rubrics and expectations early and often, and build opportunities to demonstrate learning and recoup points into my assessment tools.

While my pedagogical techniques and vocabulary may shift to meet the needs of my audience, one thing remains constant: setting students up for success takes deliberate planning, practice, patience, and the twin graces of humility and flexibility.

EXPERIENCE