Food Insecurity 🥖
Upwards of 40% of college students may be food insecure. The percentage of food-insecure college students varies depending on the source. No one is sure of the exact number since it requires students to accurately and honestly report on their status, and many people are too embarrassed to admit if they can't afford nutritious meals. Food insecurity during college means difficulty in affording tuition and food. You can make a difference. Have you considered donating to or volunteering at our campus food pantry? So Others May Eat (SOME), and DC Hunger Solutions are both tremendous local organizations where you can get involved and volunteer. Click here to read an open letter I send to my students.
If you need to use the campus food pantry to obtain food, it is an excellent resource for a struggling Terp. My office door is also open if you need a quick snack or a cup of hot tea. If I'm not in a meeting or teaching and you missed a meal, stop by my office. I'd love to grab lunch and talk about the class with you. It's always fun to catch up, and the campus has a lot of great restaurants.
Ensuring Education is Affordable and Accessible 💵
Because textbooks are expensive and may be cost-prohibitive to some students, I either don't require textbooks or offer free books in most classes I teach BSCI202 (Anatomy and Physiology 2), BSCI447(Endocrinology), HESP305 (Anatomy and Physiology of the Speech Mechanism), ENTM740 (Organic Practices) and provide many free online resources. I upload my course materials, such as learning outcomes, chapter summaries, study questions, video tutorials, ungraded quizzes, old exams, sample problems, PowerPoints, and pre-recorded lectures for students to begin early if they prefer.
My Coursera class, created in collaboration with Dr. Raymond St. Leger, Genes and the Humans Condition (from Behavior from Biotechnology), exemplifies my efforts to provide engaging and accessible science education. Over one million students internationally have enrolled in this class. It has been translated into 44 languages, including Chinese and Spanish. This class is everything I believe education should be: engaging, accurate, entertaining, and perhaps most importantly, available to everyone for free and on a platform that is easily accessible.
As an immigrant, I know firsthand how difficult access to reliable and affordable education can be in other countries. My mother could only afford the equivalent of a third-grade education by United States standards. She remains illiterate, and I see how she struggles nearly daily. Affordable and accessible education is something near and dear to my heart.
Diversity in The Classroom 🙌🏾
Diversity matters. I want my class to be inclusive, so I promote hiring diverse groups of undergraduate learning assistants (ULAs) who work in lectures and undergraduate teaching assistants (UTAs) who teach in labs. I also want students to know my office is safe for our minority, marginalized, LGBTQ students and anyone needing special assistance. My classroom is a safe and welcoming place for everyone, conducive to learning. I am here to help them succeed by providing the resources and tools they may not know are available.
So students understand how and where scientific information comes from, I use lecture examples that highlight natural and diverse scientists. For example, we discuss the research of famous women such as Barbara McClintock, known for her work with transposable elements; Dorothy Hodgkin, for her work elucidating the structure of insulin; and Rosalind Franklin, her work known for her X-ray diffraction of photo 51. 🧬 I highlight African-American scientists such as Charles R. Drew when we discuss blood banks and Percy Julian when we discuss the synthesis of affordable cortisol. I refer my students to the PBS exceptional Forgotten Genius about Percy Julian and how science is performed by real people with a wide range of backgrounds. I strongly believe in highlighting that scientific discoveries and developments result from individuals spanning different genders, ethnicities, and socioeconomic environments so that my students gain the confidence that they all have the potential to succeed regardless of their backgrounds.
Promoting Scientific Literacy and Avoiding Disinformation and misinformation! 🤔
Students are constantly bombarded with ubiquitous misinformation on topics relevant to my courses, such as how vaccinations cause autism, that genetically modified foods cause tumors, that HIV does not cause AIDS, and even that the earth is flat. 🌍 All of this is obviously misinformation! I want my students to be critical thinkers. I teach my students how to properly locate and use peer-reviewed primary literature. Students need to communicate with future patients as many of my students are interested in working in healthcare one day.
Metacognition 🧠
This website has a great definition of metacognition. I teach my students to think about their beliefs to promote critical thinking. We perform exam wrappers after our first exam and exam corrections after all of our exams so students learn to think about why they wrote the wrong answers on the exam and grow from that experience. Students often look at their exam grades and don't consider why they selected a specific response. Students must view their biases and how they may impact their exam-taking skills. I try to break them from bad habits like cramming, guessing, and studying alone. Students can learn from their mistakes on the exams and not continue to make those same errors throughout the semester in my class (and other courses). The exam wrapper and exam corrections help to motivate and empower evolving learners.
Active Learning 💥
I encourage my students to be actively involved in their learning. I work with my students and faculty to ensure students are engaged in their education. There are no back-seat learners in my classroom. As I teach, I walk around the lecture hall to ensure students answer questions and actively participate throughout the class. I give my students the resources they need to succeed and upload all of my course material at least a month before the semester begins so students can start my classes early and work at their own pace.
We perform think-pair-share (square) questions, weekly writing assignments where students work in small groups of 3-5 students facilitated by my ULAs, small stakes quizzes, case studies, group presentations, the PhEmmy, PowerPoint presentations based on current literature, and student-run discussion boards to answer lecture questions. I have learned that students become life-long learners when they take charge of their education.
Some instructors are concerned that student attendance will decline unless the PowerPoint slides and lectures are pre-recorded. I have yet to find this to be the case. I teach at 8 a.m. and have about ~75-80% of my students show up to lecture even though I upload all of my course material in advance and pre-record the course lectures. Students will show up by designing engaging lectures and assigning active-learning exercises (that are small stakes). I have also found that students often go back to these recorded lecture resources even years after the class has ended to watch the lectures for other courses. Nothing can be more rewarding as a teacher.
Here are some of the suggestions I give to my students as study tips to do well in my classes:
Upwards of 40% of college students may be food insecure. The percentage of food-insecure college students varies depending on the source. No one is sure of the exact number since it requires students to accurately and honestly report on their status, and many people are too embarrassed to admit if they can't afford nutritious meals. Food insecurity during college means difficulty in affording tuition and food. You can make a difference. Have you considered donating to or volunteering at our campus food pantry? So Others May Eat (SOME), and DC Hunger Solutions are both tremendous local organizations where you can get involved and volunteer. Click here to read an open letter I send to my students.
If you need to use the campus food pantry to obtain food, it is an excellent resource for a struggling Terp. My office door is also open if you need a quick snack or a cup of hot tea. If I'm not in a meeting or teaching and you missed a meal, stop by my office. I'd love to grab lunch and talk about the class with you. It's always fun to catch up, and the campus has a lot of great restaurants.
Ensuring Education is Affordable and Accessible 💵
Because textbooks are expensive and may be cost-prohibitive to some students, I either don't require textbooks or offer free books in most classes I teach BSCI202 (Anatomy and Physiology 2), BSCI447(Endocrinology), HESP305 (Anatomy and Physiology of the Speech Mechanism), ENTM740 (Organic Practices) and provide many free online resources. I upload my course materials, such as learning outcomes, chapter summaries, study questions, video tutorials, ungraded quizzes, old exams, sample problems, PowerPoints, and pre-recorded lectures for students to begin early if they prefer.
My Coursera class, created in collaboration with Dr. Raymond St. Leger, Genes and the Humans Condition (from Behavior from Biotechnology), exemplifies my efforts to provide engaging and accessible science education. Over one million students internationally have enrolled in this class. It has been translated into 44 languages, including Chinese and Spanish. This class is everything I believe education should be: engaging, accurate, entertaining, and perhaps most importantly, available to everyone for free and on a platform that is easily accessible.
As an immigrant, I know firsthand how difficult access to reliable and affordable education can be in other countries. My mother could only afford the equivalent of a third-grade education by United States standards. She remains illiterate, and I see how she struggles nearly daily. Affordable and accessible education is something near and dear to my heart.
Diversity in The Classroom 🙌🏾
Diversity matters. I want my class to be inclusive, so I promote hiring diverse groups of undergraduate learning assistants (ULAs) who work in lectures and undergraduate teaching assistants (UTAs) who teach in labs. I also want students to know my office is safe for our minority, marginalized, LGBTQ students and anyone needing special assistance. My classroom is a safe and welcoming place for everyone, conducive to learning. I am here to help them succeed by providing the resources and tools they may not know are available.
So students understand how and where scientific information comes from, I use lecture examples that highlight natural and diverse scientists. For example, we discuss the research of famous women such as Barbara McClintock, known for her work with transposable elements; Dorothy Hodgkin, for her work elucidating the structure of insulin; and Rosalind Franklin, her work known for her X-ray diffraction of photo 51. 🧬 I highlight African-American scientists such as Charles R. Drew when we discuss blood banks and Percy Julian when we discuss the synthesis of affordable cortisol. I refer my students to the PBS exceptional Forgotten Genius about Percy Julian and how science is performed by real people with a wide range of backgrounds. I strongly believe in highlighting that scientific discoveries and developments result from individuals spanning different genders, ethnicities, and socioeconomic environments so that my students gain the confidence that they all have the potential to succeed regardless of their backgrounds.
Promoting Scientific Literacy and Avoiding Disinformation and misinformation! 🤔
Students are constantly bombarded with ubiquitous misinformation on topics relevant to my courses, such as how vaccinations cause autism, that genetically modified foods cause tumors, that HIV does not cause AIDS, and even that the earth is flat. 🌍 All of this is obviously misinformation! I want my students to be critical thinkers. I teach my students how to properly locate and use peer-reviewed primary literature. Students need to communicate with future patients as many of my students are interested in working in healthcare one day.
Metacognition 🧠
This website has a great definition of metacognition. I teach my students to think about their beliefs to promote critical thinking. We perform exam wrappers after our first exam and exam corrections after all of our exams so students learn to think about why they wrote the wrong answers on the exam and grow from that experience. Students often look at their exam grades and don't consider why they selected a specific response. Students must view their biases and how they may impact their exam-taking skills. I try to break them from bad habits like cramming, guessing, and studying alone. Students can learn from their mistakes on the exams and not continue to make those same errors throughout the semester in my class (and other courses). The exam wrapper and exam corrections help to motivate and empower evolving learners.
Active Learning 💥
I encourage my students to be actively involved in their learning. I work with my students and faculty to ensure students are engaged in their education. There are no back-seat learners in my classroom. As I teach, I walk around the lecture hall to ensure students answer questions and actively participate throughout the class. I give my students the resources they need to succeed and upload all of my course material at least a month before the semester begins so students can start my classes early and work at their own pace.
We perform think-pair-share (square) questions, weekly writing assignments where students work in small groups of 3-5 students facilitated by my ULAs, small stakes quizzes, case studies, group presentations, the PhEmmy, PowerPoint presentations based on current literature, and student-run discussion boards to answer lecture questions. I have learned that students become life-long learners when they take charge of their education.
Some instructors are concerned that student attendance will decline unless the PowerPoint slides and lectures are pre-recorded. I have yet to find this to be the case. I teach at 8 a.m. and have about ~75-80% of my students show up to lecture even though I upload all of my course material in advance and pre-record the course lectures. Students will show up by designing engaging lectures and assigning active-learning exercises (that are small stakes). I have also found that students often go back to these recorded lecture resources even years after the class has ended to watch the lectures for other courses. Nothing can be more rewarding as a teacher.
Here are some of the suggestions I give to my students as study tips to do well in my classes:
- Start early! Begin the readings now. Don't cram for any quiz or exam. 😰
- Read through the lecture notes, watch the recorded lectures BEFORE class, and attend all lecture sessions on time. This allows you to come to class with questions (for me) and answers (when I ask you questions). 📺
- Copy your lecture notes into a second notebook within 24 hours of the lecture. Remember, writing something by hand is tied to long-term memory. ✍🏽
- Create note cards with images or key terms on one side, definitions on the other, or questions on one side and answers on the other. You can go through the PowerPoint slides backward to find terms that seem foreign to you. Finding new terms you don't know can be difficult, and this is a great trick. 📓
- Use these note cards to quiz yourself and your study partners. Quizzing yourself is an effective method to learn the material. There are free apps to create quizzes that can be helpful. 📝
- Practice writing and answering questions about the material. Don't just read the lecture slides. Actively think about the material by writing questions for you and your classmates.❓
- Create at least one question per lecture slide. Remember that I ask exam questions that require more than simply regurgitating information. Also, try to think of the types of questions I would ask. I will ask higher-level questions that need application of the material taught in class 🙇🏾♀️
- Take the online quizzes and review the study questions on the Canvas lecture site. 🖥
- Form study groups and attend weekly guided study sessions (GSS). Study groups are great because you don't know what you don't know! Working in groups of 3-6 is most effective! Meet with your study group at least twice a week and for sessions that last at least one hour. 📚
- Meditation can help you relax, especially if you tend to stress out before or during an exam. 🧘🏽♂️
- Get a good night's sleep before the exam and every night. 😴
- Make sure you're coming to class after breakfast, and don't take exams on an empty stomach. Read what I have to say about food insecurity above. Don't be afraid to have a dialogue with me about food insecurity. The campus has resources, and I can help you. You can also stop by my office before any class for breakfast. 🍳
- The University offers free tutoring! FREE!!! What a great price. 🤩
- If you are struggling with mental health issues, you are not alone. Have you considered speaking with someone at the Counseling Center? They offer free services. Keeping up with mental health is so important. This is just a class... 💪🏽
- Visit me! I would love to see your smiling face, and I can help you with time-management study skills and refer you to campus services such as the Learning Assistance Service (LAS). 🏢
If you have any questions or would like to meet to discuss any of these topics, please feel free to click on the CONTACT page tab on the top right to schedule a meeting. You are welcome to replicate any material on this site and share it with anyone who needs it (even the photos of my cute pets).