I have extensive experience teaching college level introductory physics courses as well as graduate level courses in physics education and physics education research. I am currently working on developing a course for STEM students in metacognition. I will post more details here as that development proceeds.

Values that drive my teaching.

Active Learning: We learn best when we have opportunities to engage with the ideas we are trying to learn. Lecture is effective for transmitting information (which is exactly what is needed sometimes) but is insufficient to develop meaningful understanding and the ability to apply learning. I believe in incorporating significant opportunities for students to actively engage in the ideas to be learned.

Social Learning: Related to active learning, we also need to engage with others in order to develop our understanding of concepts, especially when these concepts are complex. We need to talk about our ideas and get feedback. It is helpful to hear other’s thinking and to have opportunities to articulate our own understanding in order to help others who are still developing theirs.

Prioritize Conceptual Understanding: In the STEM classroom the development of problem solving is critical. However, before quantitative problem solving can be developed students must first have a deep conceptual understanding. Otherwise they will be experts at solving well established problems but will have little ability to tackle novel ones.

Identity Matters: Contrary to common ideology, STEM is not a field separate from humanity. Just as social structures influence what is studied in STEM and how the results are interpreted, so do social structures influence the opportunities students have to learn. Not all students have the same opportunities. Some receive significantly more support to thrive than others, often due to their social identity. It is important to acknowledge this and account for it in the STEM classroom.

Students are Human: This sounds obvious but I often see STEM teaching that does not fully acknowledge the humanity of students. Their ability to learn in the classroom is impacted by what is happening in their lives outside of the classroom. They come to our classes with a whole range of experiences in the world and a whole range of personalities. Sometimes the best way to support their learning might be to listen to understand and to offer support that is not on the surface related to the content of the course. Relatedly, supporting learning also means supporting a productive epistemology.

Data-Driven Decision Making and Continuous Improvement: I seek out evidence of what works to drive my decision making around teaching. I regularly attend professional meetings related to teaching, keep abreast of the literature, and utilize professional development opportunities that come my way. I am constantly trying new things, evaluating how they worked, and revising to try again. I make extensive use of research based teaching strategies and materials.