—-In Progress (9/20/2021)—-

There are several major tenets of my philosophy of education. They are outlined and described below. Each includes a statement of one of my philosophies, the operating assumptions upon which it operates, and the ways in which I express each philosophy in my teaching practice.

Philosophy: I believe that every student deserves the opportunity to be successful in my courses and at my institution.

Operating assumptions: My actions contribute to the campus and classroom climate.

• There is a staggering gap in the representation of students of color at primarily white institutions (PWIs) and in the institutional support institutions provide.

  • We must create learning environments that are robust enough to the variability that exists among students’ experiences.

  • We must adequately educate white students about whiteness and social justice.

  • We must equitably prioritize minoritized identities and experiences.

• Treating students equitably is different from and more effective than treating students equally.

• My role as an instructor is to:

  1. deliver culturally relevant/responsive/sensitive pedagogy.

  2. be perceptive of student needs within the framework of the course learning objectives.

  3. make content logistically accessible.

  4. provide agency to students.

• There is a place for social issues in the science classroom.

Implementation: I am reflective and responsive to the needs of all students, and my contributions are inclusive of a wide range of experiences.

• I am prepared to adapt my own instruction to optimize student learning.

  • In a meeting with a student who was working with some academic anxiety, she practiced implementing a list of action items when she is feeling anxious. We agreed that if she didn’t understand something I said, she would say “could you please explain that in a different way?”, and I would oblige without judgement. If she noticed something about my language that was introducing an unnecessary obstacle, she would say “I think the phrase ‘____’ is tripping me up. What is another way to think about that?” This struck me as an effective strategy to carry forward for all of my students. Since then, I have encouraged all my students to be honest and communicative with the teaching team about how we can optimize their learning.

• In one-on-one interactions, I often learn more about students and the factors outside of class that affect their ability to be present and to perform at their best in my class. Without these interactions, factors contributing to student performance still exist (even if I don’t know about them). It is important to structure course policies and communications to demonstrate both high expectations and empathy.

  • I welcome students to communicate with me about their specific needs. I attempt to build rapport with students enough that they feel comfortable doing so.

  • Because I genuinely believe in each of my students, I am clear that I have high expectations of them and communicate that I believe in their capability of meeting them.

  • I encourage students to take agency in identifying what they need to be successful, how they will address these needs, and who will be able to help. If a student is struggling in my course, we work together to identify specific things that are within the scope of reasonable expectations for each of us.

  • I challenge students to be honest with themselves about logistical accommodations they need to be successful in class. For example, for a student who seeks an accommodation that includes flexible deadlines, I ask them to consider the amount of flexibility that they believe will allow them to successfully fulfill the learning objectives without contributing to anxieties of multiple assessments piling up. Together we establish a fair, adaptive plan for the semester. I believe it is crucial to cognitively engage with my own intrinsic biases about student performance and behavior.

• I believe that it is more effective and more efficient to acknowledge and work to confront my own shortcomings as an educator than it is to ignore them and hope they gradually go away.

  • My classroom always has and always will have students who have different experiences than I do. Especially in an active learning space, it is important that I am constantly reflecting upon interactions with students and whether my internal biases mediated my interactions with them. This active reflection has improved my intentionality in many student interactions, including eye contact, asking/answering questions, mediating small group dynamics, etc.

  • I am especially aware of the power of confirmation bias in sculpting educators’ expectations of students, and I am intentional about finding examples to contradict potential intrinsic bias. There are always good examples of students who perform in a way that I wouldn’t have expected – this is sometimes because my expectations were unfairly and inaccurately formed (for better or for worse).

  • I remind myself that “engagement” looks different for every student, and that my interpretation of body language is constructed. During class, I provide multiple different avenues for students to engage with me and with their peers in the active learning space.

  • After the first exam, I reach out to each of the five lowest scoring students. In this email, I:

    • ask them to identify ways the teaching team can help them make a plan for studying for the next exam.

    • remind them that I have had many students whose study adjustments resulted in overwhelming success in the course after a less-than-ideal first exam.

  • After the second exam, I email the top five highest scoring students. I:

    • ask them to reflect upon their learning strategies and what it will take to continue to be successful.

    • consider how they might empower their group members in the active learning classroom environment.

• I identify meaningful applications of historical or sociopolitical themes to course content.

  • During a lecture called “Core biological concepts, homeostasis, and organ systems”, I discuss homeostasis in an activity called “Nobody Lives Forever”. Students examine data that describes the diseases and disorders most likely to plague Americans, broken down by multiple different demographic groups. We discuss the implications of interpreting public health data like these, and the underlying factors that might a) contribute to our observations, and b) bias the way certain diseases and disorders are diagnosed and treated.

  • In my course, students are responsible for completing a semester project, which involves the completion of multiple course assignments and a poster presentation on health topic of their choice. They are responsible for reporting not only on the biological and physiological features of their topic, but also the historical background and relevance to them and their classmates.

• Introduce events, historical figures, and ideas that are relevant for students’ lives and future careers.

  • At the beginning or end of class and in course announcements, I offer commentary on people, events, or ideas that have recently inspired me. For example, I spent a small amount of time at the beginning of class sharing some of the insights of Dr. Mae Jemison, an astronaut and physiologist, after her campus visit. After listening to the NYT podcast 1619, I shared the link and a few brief thoughts about the role of history in shaping the landscape of medicine (and beyond).

  • I encourage students to be actively engaged in voting for elected officials. I provide them with resources to self-educate and logistical details they need to vote.

  • I am empathetic to the multitude of current events that occupy students’ time, hearts, and minds, especially those that enlist their civic engagement. I expect that these obligations may conflict with course meeting times and deadlines, or disrupt participation and performance in my courses; I am flexible and open to hearing about and evolving expectations as necessary.

Philosophy: I believe that effective learning is an active, iterative process that engages self, peers, and instructors.

Operating assumptions: Students offer knowledge and experience that partially overlaps with that of other students and with my own.

• The traditional model of teaching that students are most accustomed is unidirectional, where the responsibilities of instructors and students are distinct and non-overlapping.

• Evidence suggests active, engaged learning can be more effective and sustainable if implemented well.

• Active learning gives agency to the student and contributes to the development of skills as life-long learners.

• Active learning mitigates power dynamics that arise between students and instructors, which can be prohibitive to student learning.

Implementation: I engage students in the process of building a shared learning space in which they capitalize on multiple sources for their ideas to reevaluate and revise their own.

Philosophy: I believe that the scope of science education includes developing a fundamental understanding of scientific exploration.

Operating assumptions/framework: Our understanding of the biophysical world is based on empirically-tested hypotheses.

• The scientific process is not limited to institutionalized science. Everyone engages in hypothesis testing and problem solving in day-to-day activities.

• Many students are interested in careers in health and science, which mandate that practitioners are up-to-date on ever-evolving scientific findings.

• Responsible citizens are ambassadors of the scientific enterprise.

Implementation: I guide students toward mastery of physiological concepts with data-driven activities and content.