Teaching

Teaching Experiences

Instructor of Record (syllabi available upon request):

Social Psychology, ETSU, Fall 2015 and Fall 2016
Create and present lecture material; design and grade active learning activities, quizzes and exams; facilitate active learning and participation within the classroom

Introduction to Psychology, ETSU, Spring 2016 and Summer 2016
Create and present lecture material; design and grade active learning activities, quizzes and exams; integrate on-ground, video conferencing, and online students; facilitate active learning and participation within the classroom and online; help prepare students for college classrooms

Design and Analysis II, Lab, ETSU, Fall 2014 and Spring 2015
Instruct students on how to write in APA style and how to perform statistical analysis including one-way ANOVA, factorial ANOVA, correlation, and simple regression; guide students in writing a research proposal; facilitate conference-style presentations for research proposals

Teaching Assistant:

Design and Analysis I, ESTU, Spring 2014
Assisted in facilitating and grading of statistics and research methods exams

Guest Lecturer:

Psychology of Women, Sexuality and Sexual Orientation
Design and Analysis II, Lab, Correlation
Introduction to Psychology, Motivation: Hunger and Sex; Social Psychology: How Others Affect Us; Consciousness, Sleep, and Psychoactive Drugs; Sensation and Perception; Helping, Harming, Persuasion: How We Interact With Others; Biological Psychology

Teaching Awards

ETSU School of Graduate Studies and Graduate Council Excellence in Teaching Award for Graduate Teacher Assistants, Spring 2015
Department of Psychology Teaching Award for Graduate Teacher Assistants, Spring 2015

Teaching Statement

As an instructor, I strive for my students to have that “Ah ha!” moment. Seeing a student’s face when they finally understand a topic is one of the most rewarding moments I have ever experienced. To this end, I endeavor to guide my students to understand material beyond rote memorization, teaching them to think critically and apply information to the world around them by requiring them to be active participants in their education. In addition to acquiring foundational knowledge, I ask my students to approach course material scientifically by challenging assumptions and claims made by research and identifying potential alternative explanations to findings. Additionally, I invite students to share their points of view with others to utilize their unique experiences to further understanding of and appreciation for diversity. This deeper engagement with course material gives my students the opportunity to apply their knowledge to the real world and to gain scientific literacy and critical thinking skills that will help them in any future career.

I seek to accomplish my teaching goals in part by assessing students’ mastery of course material in a variety of ways. Offering multiple opportunities to demonstrate knowledge outside of a traditional testing environment is important to accurately evaluate student performance, given that students often have unique learning needs. During four sections of a writing and statistics lab course, I gave my students a chance to: (1) gain understanding of APA-style and statistical analyses using in-class, guided assignments, (2) apply that knowledge on homework assignments that take a deeper approach to what we have learned in class (e.g., independent writing activities and applied statistical analyses), and (3) integrate various skills on comprehensive APA-style research paper and independent statistical assignments at the end of the semester.

I provide students with opportunities to engage with material at multiple levels. In teaching lecture courses on Social Psychology and Introduction to Psychology, I provided opportunities for: (1) low stakes engagement of material through in-class active learning activities such as one-pagers and small group activities, (2) medium stakes reading quizzes that seeks to engage students with the textbook, and (3) high stakes exams that use a variety of definitional, applied, short answer, and matching questions to test knowledge at multiple levels of engagement. Additionally, this spring, I integrated three separate classrooms: an on-the-ground course in a physical classroom space on main campus, an on-the-ground course video conferencing in from another campus, and an online classroom that was streaming the lecture. This experience provided me with the opportunity to facilitate more online learning activities and to understand the unique needs of these different types of classrooms and students.

I use mid-semester feedback to make the class more conducive to the learning styles of my current students. For example, in lab courses in which students indicated that they were having difficulty understanding some of the more difficult material halfway through the semester, I added additional low stakes, in class practice. I have also used end-of-the-semester feedback to make changes in the preparation of new courses when changes will help facilitate learning for new students. For instance, I have added more real life and popular culture examples to help explain concepts that were identified as difficult to grasp. Additionally, through experiences and training I have fostered an appreciation for the importance of professional development as an instructor through responding to both student and peer feedback and staying up-to-date on developing literature on evidence-based teaching and learning.

Beyond my formal classroom teaching, I have developed mentoring skills while working with undergraduate students taking independent study and thesis hours. I have assisted students in the development of their research ideas and conference presentations (local and national), provided opportunities for advanced students to mentor more junior peers, and worked with students to facilitate their understanding and independent exploration of complex psychological topics including research methods and statistics. I am excited by the opportunity to work with undergraduate students within the classroom to gain research skills and to help facilitate and grow those skills through independent research outside of the classroom.