TEACHING
Question Everything, Assume Nothing, Learn the truth...
College Teaching Certificate
To improve my teaching and further explore how we as students learn, I have been working towards a certificate in college teaching.
The College Teaching Certificate (CTC) is a graduate certificate in cross disciplinary pedagogy for students who plan to teach in a college or university. Students study contemporary education research focused on higher education issues, as well as gain experience in the teaching and learning process through micro-teaching modules, field experience, peer observations, and a structured practicum. Below you will find various portfolio items and course assignments documenting my experience in the CTC program.
Teaching Philosophy
My philosophy is built on reflection of my past teaching experiences, my interactions with students, and evidence-based pedagogical theory. I have realized two teaching goals guide my instruction and serve my students best:
1) Improve the quality of my student’s informed decision-making skills.
2) Create critical thinkers who ask good questions.
Students leave my classroom or research lab with a suite of skills needed not only to understand scientific findings, but to to think critically about the biological problem in the context of a highly global, connected, and collaborative world.
Teaching Materials: Mentored Field Experience
Developmental Biology was the first senior-level course I taught. I strove for a creative, team-learning environment where students were given control of their own learning, from teaching a lesson of their own to helping develop the rubrics. A variety of technology was infused in the classroom, employing a nontraditional cumulative assessment---the mini documentary. Students created a tangible product that demonstrated: their mastery of a topic in developmental biology, communication of science to a general audience, and proficiency of soft skills valuable in career preparation.
Content Goals
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Describe how cell fates are determined in the embryo
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Apply the central dogma (DNA-RNA-Protein) to the context of cellular development
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Apply the concepts of cellular communication to the context of development
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Describe the difference between correlation and causation, and evaluate the ability of both kinds of evidence to determine mechanism
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Understand how environmental factors influence development
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Understand how evolution has shaped processes and mechanisms in development
Hard Skills
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Apply in an appropriate context the basic experimental techniques of developmental biology
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Evaluate the primary literature in developmental biology
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Communicate a central concept in development to broad audiences
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Apply theory to practical and societal contexts
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Ask good questions
Soft Skills
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Work effectively and efficiently in a group to produce a finished product
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Communicate science successfully across disciplines and in a way to influence society
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Create personal/career goals and develop plans to successfully achieve goals
Course Syllabus
Example Course Documents
Semester Project: Mini Doc Components
Assessments & Annotated Example Teaching Unit
Provided is an example teaching unit, annotated with my personal reflections in the comments sections. The unit showcases my ability to apply and adhere to backward design (choosing my learning goals first and assuring assessments align with those goals).
Furthermore, the unit shows how I create a learner-centered environment, implement active learning strategies in the classroom, incorporate STEM education research, and creatively use inquiry-based activities.
Annotated Bibliography
Collection of scholarly articles that:
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reflect a rigorous and focused research foundation relevant to my teaching and learning interests
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are annotated to show the source research methods, findings, and implications
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reflect both comprehensive and disciplinary-specific theories/research on scholarship of teaching and learning
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contain concrete examples of how study findings have informed my approach to teaching and how I have applied the scholarship to my teaching.
Application of Scholarship to Teaching: A Diagnostic Assessment
Here I have taken something from the literature, applied it to my field experience, and assessed how it went. A copy of the article selected, a lesson plan demonstrating how how I implemented the idea, and my annotated assessment of the implementation are included.
Post Reflection:
Student-generated reading questions allowed me to
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validate or disregard my assumptions about the student’s base knowledge
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choose what portion of the content needed to be taught (data-driven instructional decisions)
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avoid temptation to cover all concepts in developmental biology (avoiding cognitively overloading students).
Evaluations of My Teaching
Evaluations of My Teaching by Faculty
In Fall 2017, I was nominated by my department for national K. Patricia Cross Future Leaders Award.
Nominees must demonstrate:
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Leadership ability in teaching and learning, with a strong commitment to academic and civic responsibility;
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Leadership in the development of others as leaders, scholars, and citizens.
The following are letters of recommendation, evaluating my performance in the classroom.
Reflective Essay
Reflective essay on how I have changed as a teacher since the start of the College Teaching Certificate program. Evidence draws from my CTC coursework, the scholarship of teaching and learning, observations of my teaching mentor, and my field experience.
