Out of the Nest

This month, Elizabeth concludes our 2023-2024 Faculty Spotlight series by letting us get to know a bit more about Michael Stebar, Senior Lecturer of Biology and Co-Director of the Summer Enrichment Program. Find out what you can learn when your middle school teacher is the Six Million Dollar Man and what activity can distract Michael from grading…

For the past few years you’ve served as co-director of the Summer Enrichment Program (SEP) at UMW and helped organize the Science Olympiad on campus. What have you enjoyed about being involved with these events?  

Interacting with the students is one aspect that I enjoy the most when working with SEP and the Virginia Science Olympiad; it’s just fun!  The students are genuinely inspirational.   Seeing them engaged in and enjoying learning, makes me feel excited, and honestly gives me a sense of optimism for the future.  Also, I think hosting SEP and VASO extends our connections to a myriad of communities and provides UMW additional opportunities to support students of all ages.   I grew up in the southwestern part of the state near VA Tech.   In elementary school, I was lucky to participate in several field trips to the university where I explored science labs, watched theatrical performances, and toured art galleries.  I was mesmerized by each experience and quickly perceived universities as centers of knowledge and creativity.   I am happy that I can help UMW provide similar experiences to students.   

Your research interests are rooted in science pedagogy. As you direct the intro biology program, how do you see this research reflected in what you do in this role and in the classroom?

I have always had an interest in the “art and science” of teaching.  Before joining the UMW community, I taught high school biology for 16 years.  Although I really LOVED teaching that age group, I always thought there wasn’t enough time or weren’t enough opportunities to get students into the lab or into the field to “do” science.  I thought that students finished my class not fully understanding scientific methods.   Since then, UMW and my colleagues in Jepson have given me phenomenal opportunities to really explore science pedagogy, and, in particular, to develop lab experiences that model more authentic research experiences.  

When I started at UMW a few years ago (okay, maybe 10… 11?) the majority of labs conducted in introductory biology were the traditional “cook book” labs where students follow a set of instructions to conduct observations or experiments resulting in a prescribed and guaranteed set of outcomes.  These can be useful in reinforcing content understanding, but do little to explore the actual research methods and quantitative analyses involved in “doing’ science.  In 2016, I collaborated with Drs. Baker, Wynn, and Zies to completely revamp the labs for fall semester intro bio. We threw out the cook-book, and developed three, multi-week lab modules that mimic the stages of scientific research. Since then, I’ve continued to modify and update the labs to increase their efficacy.  Students now finish the class with a better understanding of experiment design and data analysis.  I’m about to tackle revamping our spring intro course and am looking forward to creating new lab experiences. 

Is there anything that stands out to you that has prepared you or continues to prepare you most for effective teaching?

I think continuing to be a learner myself, helps me be a better teacher.  I enjoying learning about learning so I try to keep up with current research in pedagogy and cognitive psychology.  I’m always looking for strategies that help me to help my students learn better.   I’ve got 28 years (yikes) of teaching experience to pull from, and I enjoy integrating new strategies into my repertoire.   

Who was your favorite teacher?

That’s a tough question because I have always enjoyed learning and liked all of my teachers.  However, if I had to only pick one, I think my favorite teacher was Mr. Steve Austin who taught 6^thand 7^th grade science.  In addition to being bionic and worth 6 million dollars (hopefully most folks get that reference), he really enjoyed teaching science.   It’s obviously been decades, but I still remember that he always incorporated lots of labs, field work, and enrichment opportunities in our classes (including trips to VA Tech).   There are skills I learned in his class that I still use today in my work and at home – setting up/maintaining aquariums, identifying frog calls, telling the difference between a rock and a mineral, and – most useful – tucking the bottom of pants in to your socks while doing field work so that ticks don’t crawl up your legs! 

8:00 a.m. class or 4:00 p.m. class?  

I am definitely a morning person so I would prefer an 8:00 a.m. class.  I usually wake up around 4:30 – 5:00 a.m.; I have much more energy and mental focus in the mornings so I am probably more engaging in class.  We should get students’ opinions from my 8:00 and 11:00 labs! 

What is your dream class to teach? 

Other than introductory bio,  I think my dream class would either be Entomology or Chordate Anatomy – they were my favorite classes when I was a student and include the biology topics that I am most interested in.   Plus, they would provide lots of opportunity for field work which gets us outside.

What is one piece of advice you’d give a brand-new faculty member? 

Only one?!  That’s tough… how about a dozen?  Let’s go with a core Teaching 101 activity = state your learning objectives!  For every topic you cover, firstly decide what you want your students to actually know and skills you want them to develop.  Then build your lessons and assessments to help them reach those objectives.    AND share these with your students so they know what you expect of them.

What podcast, book, or show would you currently recommend?

I recently read Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver; it was intense.  I think she’s an excellent researcher and writer.  I loved how she put a modern, and incredibly relevant, spin on a classic tale (I won’t spoil it by saying which one).  

If you could take any class in the UMW catalog, what would it be? 

Any studio art class.   I took a couple art classes when I was young.  I really enjoy working with charcoals, and I used to spend/lose hours engrossed in sketching (to the detriment of getting grading done).   But, I’m really out of practice, so I would enjoy the chance to get back into it.  

What were you like as a student in college? 

As an undergrad, I was not the greatest student and was too social!  I was one of those high school students who never had to any work or thinking to get good grades. Getting my first D’s and F’s was a big wake up call.  It took me a couple years to learn how to study and learn effectively. Fortunately, I got my ducks in a row, and for graduate school, I was a tremendously better student … and too social.   

March’s Faculty Spotlight shines brightly on Gary Richards (English & Linguistics). Learn how Dr. Richards took a chance on playful learning this semester…and why he does NOT have a good podcast recommendation for Elizabeth!

You’ve incorporated “play days” into your syllabus this semester. What was your goal in doing this and what did it look like in your classes? 
 
I developed designated Play Days in my syllabi this semester after attending the presentation and workshop given by Sarah Rose Cavanagh in January. She advocated that adding playful elements to one’s class can provide ways for students to bond, add variety to the class’s sessions, and help students negotiate anxiety, all of which seemed valuable to me. 
 
We’ve had two Play Days so far, both on February 14. In my ENGL 385: Contemporary American Fiction, students used construction paper, copier paper, stickers, scissors, markers, and rubber cement to create physical valentines that literary figures we’d encountered so far this semester might send to one another. Some were serious, some were witty, and one was wonderfully angry. Many students did implicitly feminist critiques, especially of Jack Kerouac’s _On the Road_. 
 
In my WGST 102: Perspectives in Sexuality, students made lists of terms associated with gender and sexuality that they thought were important or amusing. Students then, as in elementary school, wrote their vocabulary words in sentences, selecting one to write on the whiteboard. That then gave us twenty sentences *that students cared about* to assess for grammar and punctuation (WGST 102 is a Writing Intensive course) and potentially learn new vocabulary.  

How did your students respond to these days in class? Did you notice a difference in the class? 
 
For the most part, students got into the playfulness. As they were making their valentines, there were lots of different types of conversations going on: memories of elementary school, concerns about artistic abilities, jokes about the characters, and so on. As students were composing their sentences, they often chose to be amusing or to introduce more esoteric terms to potentially stump their classmates, and we ultimately did a meta-critique of what patterns emerged in their vocabulary. In both scenarios, every student was actively engaged, which, I fear, isn’t always the case in standard classroom discussions. 

Do you think you’ll do this in the future? Would you adjust anything? 
 
I have two more Play Days scheduled this semester. They are listed on the syllabi so students know that they have a break/different sort of exercise that day and can use it as a time to metaphorically exhale. I’ll definitely see what sort of feedback I get on student evaluations at the end of the semester, but, for now, I’m planning to incorporate similar days in future classes. I’m especially eager to try this in my fall FSEM devoted to sexuality in southern literature. 

You’ve recently served as a Faculty Fellow for Academic Services. What was something you’ve taken away from that experience either in general or into your classrooms now? 
 
I’m now halfway through my third year as a Faculty Fellow in Academic Services. Our absolutely central focus there is on academic advising, whether that is developing study skills and time management, adjusting to a new campus, or negotiating the bureaucracy of the General Education program, majors, and minors. This work has made me far more attuned in my own classes to being available to help students–and especially transfer students–negotiate these issues. Students so appreciate reliable, accurate advising about taking classes and completing the General Education in a timely manner. 

Is there anything that stands out to you that has prepared you or continues to prepare you most for effective teaching? 
 
It has taken me a long time to internalize this, but simply bringing energy and humor to a classroom can be one of the most effective ways to keep students engaged. My jokes don’t always land, but when I do get the chuckle or smile, it’s an immediate way to know that I’m reaching students. 

Who was your favorite teacher? 
 
Isn’t that a bit like asking about one’s favorite child? I was so fortunate to have amazing teachers who took an active interest in me as a person. In elementary school, Gail Tanton, my third grade teacher, had me and three other students in her wedding ceremony (I lit candles). In high school, Elaine Hoff and Renee Bennett coached Academic Decathlon and made us nerdy kids feel just as important as the athletes in sports-centric Texas. In college, Laura Mooneyham. Paula Cooey, and Lisa Reitzes modeled effective teaching for me as well as taught me about English, religion, and architecture respectively. Finally, I had a trio of amazing Americanists: Michael Kreyling, Nancy Walker, and Cecelia Tichi. 
 
But, if I think more broadly about teaching, my mother has been–and, at 80, continues to be–the person who has taught me the lion’s share of life skills: how make potato salad and banana nut bread, how to sew on buttons and iron clothes, how to fold towels and fitted sheets, and so on. And those skills are way more practical than explicating William Faulkner.

8 a.m. class or 4:00 p.m. class? 
 
I teach at 8 a.m. virtually every semester. It’s not ideal, but I like being done with my teaching early in the day so that I can do advising in Academic Services later in the day. 

What is your favorite UMW class to teach? Why? 
 
Two favorites at the moment are: the interdisciplinary WGST 102 and my first-year seminar devoted to Stephen Sondheim. Both classes allow me to reach students other than English majors. The former constantly reinforces to me that students are eager to systematically think and discuss sexuality in a sex-positive environment, and the latter allows me to bond with students over the most important figure in musical theater in the twentieth century. 

What is your dream class to teach?

I greatly enjoyed a class in humor that I taught several years ago. We spent four weeks reading humor theory, then the majority of the semester reading humorous works of US literature, and the last two weeks with students doing projects on contemporary humor. It was a minefield, given how explosive and offensive humor can be, but it was so much fun.

If you could take any class in the UMW catalog, what would it be?

Any art history class. That was my minor as an undergraduate. I also remember seeing a flyer in Combs for a nineteenth-century French culture class that sounded *amazing*.

What is one piece of advice you would give a brand-new faculty member?

Bring energy and organization to the classroom.

What podcast, book, or show would you currently recommend?

I don’t listen to podcasts or subscribe to any streaming service. Maya Mathur (English and Linguistics professor) tells me the twenty-first century is a wonderful place, if I ever decide to visit.

In this month’s Faculty Spotlight, Elizabeth interviewed Randall Helmstutler (Associate Professor-Mathematics) and Jennifer Magee (Senior Lecturer-Mathematics). Read on to learn about flipped classrooms and making calculus (dare we say it?) FUN…

You both run a completely flipped classroom. Can you tell us a little about the course and what this generally looks like? 

JM: We’ve now each taught MATH 121 and 122 (Calculus I and II) with the flipped classroom. This is the first two semesters of Calculus, so these courses encompass everything from limits and derivatives to volumes and Taylor series. For each section in the textbook, we ask the students to complete a prep assignment before class. This involves watching videos, reading the textbook, and working on a problem related to the new content. When I arrive at class (having reviewed the assignments beforehand), we discuss the problem as a group and any questions that arose. For the rest of the class period, students work through problems in groups at the board. 

RH:  All of the group activities discussed in class come from the textbook we use, Active Calculus, written by a group at Grand Valley State University in Michigan.  The authors of the text were quite ingenious in how they chose to scaffold the sections and activities in the book to give a natural progression through the main ideas and techniques of Calculus.  It’s not easy to design problems that have the right combination of “this will teach them something deep” and “this is actually within their reach.” This book has met the middle correctly.  The previous night’s prep work gets them thinking about the next topic and gets them confused enough to know where their questions lie (an incredibly important part of doing mathematics that my lecture classes omit).  The next day’s group activities start to chip away at the confusion until–over time–they have complete understanding.  It’s an amazing thing to watch unfold.   

How have you noticed the style of the classroom impacting student engagement and performance? 

JM: I’ve noticed a huge difference in engagement. Multiple students have told me that Calculus was their most fun class. My favorite comment, though, was when a student mentioned that the desks aren’t relevant in the class because they’re always up at the board solving problems! 

RH:  To me, this is far and away the reason to try teaching in this style.  When I was a pure lecturer, I dispensed lots of information and received sparse feedback.  Maybe I’d get a few decent questions in class, and maybe I’d learn a little about how they’re understanding things when I gave a homework set every three weeks or so.  But what about the time in between? In this model, I get feedback in every single class meeting from every single student.  As the groups are working on the textbook activities, I circulate around the room to discuss, critique, and praise the work that they’re doing.  The ensuing discussions are lively and actually exciting (yes, in a Calculus class).  And there is no better feeling when a student finally gets it, knowing that they got there on their own.  They take ownership of their understanding of Calculus, and that’s a huge factor for me.  

If someone wanted to try out this kind of classroom in their teaching, what would be your number one recommendation for them to do first?  

RH:  This is a two-way tie.  First, just do it and commit to it; you’ll be fine.  Second, seek advice from experienced colleagues, on- and off-campus.  Active and flipped pedagogies are not exactly new anymore, so there is likely a movement already afoot in your discipline.  That means that there are likely already resources in place for you to exploit. 

What would you tell them is the most difficult part of running a flipped classroom?

JM: I think the most difficult part is letting go of some control of the classroom. One really nice thing about teaching this way is that you can meet each student where they are. You need to have some level of trust that they are going to ask questions and make mistakes, then figure it out. But also, getting started is probably the hardest part.  

RH:  My first instinct was to say the amount of prep time and organization required to run a class like this, but I think Jen is spot-on with that first bit on letting go.  As an old-school mathematician, your reflex is to supply the students a perfectly packaged derivation that’s spotless and orderly, one that’s worthy of being carved on a stone tablet.  But that’s not how anyone really comes about new mathematical knowledge:  it’s a struggle, and the path along the way is filled with errors and mis-steps before you finally get it right.  Teaching this way lets the students have the same experience that we have as mathematicians, but to do it you cannot spoon-feed them the right path.  Their way of understanding will not be the same as yours, and you have to let go of the feeling that your way is the “right” way.  That’s hard for control freaks like me.  

Is there anything that stands out to you that has prepared you or continues to prepare you most for effective teaching? 

JM: I’ve been regularly attending regional meetings of the Mathematical Association of America since I started at UMW. Each time I go to a meeting, my teaching energy is reinvigorated from talking to people at other institutions and hearing what they’re doing in their classrooms. 

RH:   Talking with colleagues about teaching.  I don’t think I did enough of this as a younger faculty member.  There are tons of people here at UMW and elsewhere with really great ideas, so I seek them out.  I’m not shy about stealing people’s cleverness.  

Who was your favorite teacher? 

RH:  Nick Kuhn, from whom I took many courses as a graduate student.  He had an unbelievably coherent view of wide swaths of mathematics and could tie them together through his lectures in all these unexpected ways.  He was a real storyteller.   

JM: Probably my undergraduate advisor, Jenny Kline. She brought a lot of energy to the classroom and made class fun. I credit her for encouraging me to go to graduate school.  

8 a.m. class or 4:00 p.m. class? 

RH:  8:00 a.m. every time.  I’m a morning person, so I’m fresher and more energetic then, and I find the students are, too (contrary to the common perceptions).  I also love having the remainder of my day clear to prepare for the next class, meet with students, construct assignments, etc. 

JM: 8:00 am, 100%. I’m a morning person too. And I prefer the flow of the workday when my classes are early. 

What is your favorite UMW class to teach? Why?  

RH:   This is hard to say (who’s your favorite child?), but I’d go with our Calculus sequence.  Honestly, this would not have been my answer before we flipped this class, but it is so much fun to engage with the students every day and get in good arguments about mathematics.  I always leave class amazed at what they can learn on their own just by using their good brains and some motivation.  Runners-up would be anything cryptography-related.  I teach an intro and an advanced course in the area, and it’s just an absolutely fascinating branch of mathematics.    

JM: With some recency bias, I’d say MATH 121. Especially with the flipped classroom, it’s really fun to help students learn in this way. My other favorite class is MATH 110, which is one of our gen-ed offerings. While the students in that class aren’t typically as interested in math, I enjoy showing them that math can be fun and help us answer some interesting questions.

What is your one piece of advice for a brand-new faculty member?  

JM: Reach out and connect with others across campus. There are a lot of really friendly people willing to help with everything from figuring out how to use Banner to discussing new teaching strategies. 

What podcast/book/show would you currently recommend?

JM: I enjoy listening to Happier with Gretchen Rubin. I enjoy the conversational tone and I’ve gotten several take-aways that are easy to implement. My favorite was the one minute rule- if a task takes less than one minute, do it without delay. 

RH:  Are blogs still a thing?  If so, I’ll say the Grading for Growth blog.  Lots of good discussion  and debate on alternative assessment schemes.  

If you could take any class in the UMW catalog, what would it be? 

JM: GEOG 245. I’ve never taken a geography class, but I am interested in it! 

RH: CPRD 104:  Meditation and Contemplative Practices.  I need to relax.  

In this month’s Faculty Spotlight, Elizabeth interviews Assistant Professor of Music Theory, Robert Wells (who is also Director of Keyboard Studies and Director of UMW Indian Music Ensemble).

You have been involved in some SoTL work, can you tell us a little about what that work entailed and where you currently are in that process? 

I’ve been investigating the impact of embodied teaching strategies (things like exploring classroom space, hand gestures, and physical object manipulation) on student learning in the music theory classroom.  Many topics in music theory are inherently abstract, so I was interested in how physically grounded strategies might make the material more tangible for students. This research also has potential applications to other academic disciplines, especially those with quantitative components.   

I initially developed this project as a member of the UMW Center for Teaching’s 2021-22 SoTL Scholars cohort, which helped me move from knowing very little about SoTL research to running a pedagogical study in my MUTH 181A (Materials and Sources for Music Theory) course.  I was able to present the results of this study at the 2022 Society for Music Theory national conference, and I plan to submit an article based on these results to a SoTL journal in the near future.  I hope to eventually run further classroom studies to investigate the possible role of embodied teaching strategies in more advanced theory courses, as well.

What does your research agenda look like right now?

In addition to SoTL, I have been juggling a few other research projects.  The biggest right now, and the focus of my Jepson Fellowship for this academic year, involves rhythmic performance problems in the piano music of Franz Liszt, and how theory and performance can inform one another.  In January ’24, I’ll be giving a lecture-recital at UMW that will summarize my results thus far, followed by a full performance of four major Liszt piano works. 

Other research and performance projects include an ongoing collaboration with a scholar in Chennai, India involving computational approaches to South Indian rhythm; a project investigating the work of mathematical music theorist David Lewin and the shifting boundaries between music and mathematics in his writing; and a long list of piano recital programs I’d like to perform at some point. 

What stands out to you that has prepared you or continues to prepare you most for effective teaching?   

My first job teaching job after grad school—an adjunct position in a program focused on commercial music—certainly stands out.  My training in college and grad school had been completely grounded in classical music, so I had to spend several years drastically expanding my musical repertoire for effective theory and piano teaching at that institution.  I am now extremely grateful for this experience, though, as the ability to teach pop, rock, hip hop, jazz, etc. alongside Chopin and Beethoven has been invaluable for sharing the power and relevance of music theory with today’s music students.

Who was your favorite teacher?  

Every teacher I have had has shaped who I am in some way, so this is a tough choice. If I had to choose, I would probably either say my high school precalculus/calculus teacher (Mrs. Fleck), who encouraged my mathematical curiosity in profound ways, or my grad school piano professor (Dr. Elisi), who continues to influence how I practice, perform, and think about the relationship between scholarship and practical performance issues to this day. 

What is your favorite way to start a class?  

I like to have music playing when students walk in that relates in some way to what we’ll be studying that day.  It’s especially fun when students try to guess how the music will relate to that day’s topic. 

8 a.m. class or 4:00 p.m. class?  

4 PM, for sure!  The class atmosphere feels more relaxed, students are usually happier, and it’s probably the last thing I’m doing that day. 

What is your favorite UMW class to teach? Why?  

Probably MUTH 391 (Post-Tonal Music Theory), which involves music theory for 20th/21st-century music.  It’s a fun course to teach because it applies mathematics to music in a very direct way; it has a lot of opportunities for student exploration; and it encourages students to grapple with some music that is completely outside of their comfort zones (e.g., dissonant atonal music), and other music that they encounter daily that uses contemporary techniques (e.g., film and video game music). 

What is your one piece of advice for a brand-new faculty member?  

As you dive into all your new classes and responsibilities at UMW, try to find at least a little time each week for something completely non-work-related! 

What podcast would you currently recommend?

I would recommend Radiolab and Freakonomics Radio for episodes about science, the economy, and society that will change how you think about the world. If you like listening to scary stories, I also recommend the Creepy podcast. 

If you could take any class in the UMW catalog, what would it be? 

Definitely MATH 453 (Mathematical Cryptography).  Cryptography involves using mathematical methods to encrypt things like credit card information, confidential messages, and so forth so that only the sender and recipient have access to the information.  I remember encountering several cryptographic topics in my undergraduate math courses and finding them fascinating, but there wasn’t a standalone course.  I’d love to learn more, especially in this day and age. 

What were you like as a student in college?  

I was a responsible student, but I was also really bad at listening to lectures.  I’d usually end up just going home and teaching myself everything from the textbook.  I also enjoyed practicing the piano late at night, as the Furman music building was open until the wee hours of the morning.  It was a nice way of decompressing at the end of the day! 

Did you miss the first of our Teach30 programming? Elizabeth shared an activity called “Who is the Expert in the Room?” (also known by other names depending on how it is used).  How might you implement and use the activity? Take a read through and see what you come up with for your classes:  

“Who is the Expert in the Room?” or “How Can I Help?” 

This activity is one that goes by various names, but can be adapted easily into almost any course. The activity is particularly useful in a course with either intimidating content or projects and assignments with anxiety-provoking components, such as speaking intensive and research intensive courses.  

Purpose:

• Allows students to recognize their current strengths, as everyone has something to offer 

• Allows students to see that there is a community of others that can help them where they feel least sufficient. 

How It Works: 

• After discussing the course or a particular assignment, brainstorm skill sets that would be beneficial to completing relevant tasks (ex: scholarly research skills, design skills, writing skills, group work experience, editing, etc.) 
• Hand out index cards or scrap paper (1-2 per student) 
• Have students consider the skills discussed—encourage them to consider that they all have strengths and they all likely have something they’re feeling less confident about.  
• On the index cards, students write one skill they’re most concerned about or least confident about. Students then tape their cards on the walls around the classroom.  
• Next, ask students to focus in on their strengths—look around at the cards on the walls and think about where they could offer assistance or encouragement on a skill. Ask students to write their names on at least 2 different cards.  
• Once completed, everyone retrieves their original cards from the wall.  
• Debrief the activity with a discussion of skills building, recognizing that we all have strengths we can offer and others around us can help us improve or balance the skills that we feel less confident using.
• If students don’t know each other yet, take time to let them talk to one another and meet the people who signed their cards.  

Adaptations:

This activity is often used as a start-of-the-semester activity, but it can also be used to introduce larger assignments, to track skills building, and even as a consideration when forming project groups to balance out skills to best meet project requirements.  

In an online course, this can be a way to build a sense of community and help students feel less isolated—an instructor might do this asynchronously through a tool like Padlet and then have students reach out to their “helpers” as part of the activity. 

In this month’s Faculty Spotlight, Elizabeth interviews UMW’s Faculty Director for the Speaking Intensive Program and Associate Professor of Communication, Adria Goldman.

You’re in your second year as the Speaking Intensive Director—what drew you to this role?  

I’ve always been annoyed by common misconceptions about the study of Communication, so it is great to be in a position where I can help reinforce the value of communication in various subject areas, and for life, in general. 

Last semester, you presented on a teaching panel at the Eastern Communication Association conference—can you tell us a little about what you presented on?  

I was a part of a panel on collaborative team based and experiential learning. I discussed the class project I use when teaching Seminar in Digital Rhetoric (a capstone course with AMW designation). Students work together to design and implement a project promoting digital literacy to some target audience. The project is student led as the class works together to brainstorm and vote on a topic, create work agreements, develop task groups, and create a grading rubric. I shared details of the assignment and its implementation and discussed the value of student-led, team-based activities. It was fun to share the project with others and I walked away with so many additional ideas to use in the classroom.

You have an extensive teaching background; how do you see your research and teaching informing each other?  

I am always bringing my research into the classroom, whether it’s to add to our discussion on a particular topic or to serve as an example of the research process as I help students with mapping out their own research. The discussions I have with my students also inspire me to research. As we unpack course topics in rhetoric, identity, and pop culture, and I help them with developing their ideas, it makes me want to extend my own research and add to conversations on identity, communication, and pop culture. Teaching courses like Communication Research Methods and Seminar in Digital Rhetoric (capstone course) also give me the cool opportunity to use my research as an example, while constantly challenging myself to stay up to date on research practices—which helps my teaching and my researching.  

What does your research agenda look like right now? Has it changed in unanticipated ways?   

I continue to study the role of identity in communication, and I continue to focus heavily on representations of Black women in popular culture…Following a book project on Issa Rae and her media messages of identity and intersectionality, I have begun…exploring pop culture representations of Black Women’s Sexuality and the real-life implications of such messaging.  

My research agenda did change a tad in that I have spent more attention looking at media literacy.  I am trying to discover ways that I can use my research findings to create resources and activities that promote media literacy for younger audiences…I have always felt like research should live beyond books and academic journals. I am excited that I am finally looking for ways to follow up on that thought. 

Is there anything that stands out to you that has prepared you or continues to prepare you most for effective teaching?   

Reflection has been huge, and I love to include students on those reflections, as well. Thinking about what I originally intended for an assignment, as well as what worked well and what didn’t work well has really helped me in the classroom. I also think it is incredibly valuable to chat with others who are teaching…I have grown so much as a teacher by conversing with others in teaching and learning from their experiences and reflection.  

Who was your favorite teacher?  

I have so many! If I had to narrow it down to one it would be Dr. Pamela Tracy—my undergraduate professor in Communication Studies at Longwood University. Being in her classroom was both challenging and fun. She inspired me to become a professor and I strive to create a classroom culture like she did.  

What is your favorite way to start a class?  

Two ways — first I ask an attendance question about some random fun fact (ex: what is your favorite restaurant) and then we take a moment for students to share good news and updates. It is cool to learn about the students and especially fun to watch them celebrate each other’s good news. 

8 a.m. class or 4:00 p.m. class?  

4 p.m. — that’s a tough one, but I am not a morning person 🙂  

What is your dream class to teach? 

Black Women and Popular Culture. It would follow the format of a book I edited years ago with some friends from graduate school.  The class would use a mix of scholarly, popular, and news sources as we study Black women’s complex relationship with pop culture. I would invite some of the contributing authors from the book to come in and chat with the class.  

What is your one piece of advice for a brand-new faculty member?  

Give yourself time and grace to learn your students, your school, and your teaching style. After each year, reflect on what went well and what didn’t. Whatever didn’t work—learn from it, scratch it off the list, and move on.  

What podcast, book, or show would you recommend right now?  

Abbott Elementary. Quinta Brunson is amazing.  

If you could take any class in the UMW catalog, what would it be? 

Dr. Gary Richards is offering Perspectives in Sexuality during spring 2024 and I would love to be a part of those class discussions. (If I can take two, I’d add Games and Culture by Dr. Zach Whalen. I am always hearing students rave about the course and the cool things they learn.) 

What were you like as a student in college?  

Busy! I was a commuter student with both an off-campus and on-campus job, so my weekly planner was my best friend. Back then, my plan was to be the next Oprah and I made that announcement each year during class introductions. (So funny how later tutoring microeconomics made me shift my plan to teaching!) 

In our monthly Faculty Spotlight, CfT Faculty Fellow, Elizabeth Johnson-Young, goes out to find colleagues who are bringing energy and new ideas into their teaching, often turning that work into research in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL).

This month, we’d like you to meet two COB colleagues:

Alex Dunn, Associate Professor of Management

Samira Fallah, Assistant Professor/Strategy

You two have a SoTL article that was recently published. Can you tell us a little about what this project investigated and what you found?

We took a common executive strategic planning tool, called scenario planning, and translated the tool into a process that students can use when planning for various parts of their career and job search process. The activity walks students through evaluating external forces, developing possible future situations, and analyzing the implications of each of the situations. The activity can be completed in face-to-face classes, outside of class, and in online classes.

Our article, titled “The Future Is Scary!: A Job Search Scenario Planning Exercise to Encourage Student Resilience Capacity and Reduce Stress,” has been published in the Journal of Management Education.

What are the implications of the research?

Based on pretest-posttest data, students (N = 71) report that the exercise significantly reduced stress about their own job searches and increased positive mood. Most students also agreed that scenario planning can help with understanding how to prepare and approach different job search situations and can be a useful tool for dealing with future unknowns.

How was the project valuable to you as a teacher and as a researcher?

From a teaching perspective, we now have a great activity that we can use in a variety of classes and can cater it to the specific topic we are teaching. Alex teaches human resources and can use this while she teaches about recruitment. Samira teaches strategic management and can use this while she teaches about scenario planning as a planning tool.

From a research perspective, this project is part of a special issue called “Teaching about Contemporary Careers”. We hope it reaches other management educators who can adopt the exercise and use it in their classes to help students better prepare for their own job searches.

What does your research agenda look like right now? Has it changed in unanticipated ways?

We both have two streams of research: discipline-related discovery research and SoTL research. We have found a great organization called the Management and Organizational Behavior Teaching Society (MOBTS) that supports SoTL research in our discipline. We have plans to continue SoTL research and are working on our next project together that we plan to submit to the MOBTS conference this year, get feedback on, and then turn into another publication.

What is your favorite UMW class to teach?

Alex: Human Resources or Management & Films

Samira: Principles of Management and Strategic Leadership

What is your favorite way to start a class?

Alex: Hearing about student’s lives outside of class – their weekend plans, sports team updates, travels, etc.

Samira: Capturing students’ attention right from start! I prefer starting class with a question, an engaging video, or a relevant news article that gets students thinking about the session’s topic.

8 a.m. class or 4:00 p.m. class?

Alex: Despite being a morning person (like Samira), my speaking voice is not ready at 8am. So, 4pm all the way!

Samira: I am definitely a morning person but 8 am is a bit too early for me! Make it 9, and I am all in!

What is your dream class to teach?

Alex: an advanced OB/leadership class where students solve real-world leadership problems for companies and learn about themselves as leaders.

Samira: a class all about Chief Executive Officers (CEOs)!

What podcast would you currently recommend? (or book/show/etc.—you pick!)

Alex: I don’t want to embarrass myself too much here, but I listen to a daily pop culture podcast called The Toast. I also keep up with Adam Grant’s WorkLife podcast and anything Brene Brown.

Samira: A Podcast, in Persian, called Channel B which introduces interesting books. I am also a fan of “Wisdom From The Top with Guy Raz” and “Inside the Strategy Room podcasts” by McKinsey & Company

We are briefly pausing our entanglement with learning monsters to address a question that has been popping up–do you have any recommendations for summer reading?

At CfT, we are big fans of the Teaching and Learning in Higher Education series from the West Virginia University Press. Their latest book, Improving Learning and Mental Health in the College Classroom, follows the series’ pattern of current research supporting actionable steps that faculty can use in their classrooms. ‘Theory into Practice’ sections in each chapter offer a variety of strategies that work across teaching and learning contexts. This book is a strong contender for the No Time to Read Book Club–check it out and let us know your thoughts!

Elizabeth F. Barkley and Claire Howell Major have written books about collaborative learning and learning assessment techniques. Their books are noteworthy for offering a variety of strategies with clear discussion about the pros and cons to all approaches. Two personal favorites from these authors are Engaged Teaching: A Handbook for College Faculty and Interactive Lecturing: A Handbook for College Faculty. Engaged Teaching is great if you are doing a complete rethink of your practice, especially in response to new teaching and learning needs for students. Interactive Lecturing proves that the lecture is not dead–and can actually be engaging for students.

Books and pools can sometimes be a tricky combination—cannonball, anyone? If putting on the earphones and listening to a podcast is more your style, we recommend the following series (most with deep back catalogs of episodes):

• Intentional Teaching with Derek Bruff (new episodes every Tuesday and a fabulous newsletter as well)
• Tea for Teaching with John Kane and Rebecca Mushtare (if you are doing the TILT workshop with CfT in June, listen to the May 24th episode with Mary-Ann Winklemes)
• Lecture Breakers with Barbi Honeycutt (so many great active learning strategies and resources)
• Teaching in Higher Ed with Bonni Stachowiak (Be sure to check out episode 465 with Sarah Rose Cavanagh discussing her latest book, Mind Over Monsters, another No Time to Read Book Club finalist)

Share with us your summer reading and podcast favorites–we would love to give them a shout out (and add to the piles on our desks, nightstands, and playlists!)

Teaching during a pandemic challenged all norms of what can be done in classrooms–and, now, we’re not sure if what we’re doing works anymore. Extensions or hard deadlines? Prescribed assignments or choose-your-own options? Attendance policies or Zoom options?

If we want to compassionately challenge students, we have to know and name the ‘learning monsters’ they bring to our classes. Learning monsters are the messages students carry about their ability to learn and respond to challenges. Compassionate challenge starts with recognizing monsters auditing our classes by taking seats in our students’ minds.

This past Tuesday, we asked faculty in a Center for Teaching workshop to identify ‘learning monsters’ who attached to our students this year. Meet the students you never knew you had…

The Stress Monster, who doesn’t know what to study or how to study or why everyone else gets it besides them.

Multifactor Medusa waits to the last minute to complete an assignment AND thinks they cannot do anything AND runs out of time AND thinks they are not good enough–in anything.

Terrible Time Terror (T3 to the rest of us) juggles jobs, family, friends, classes, studying, and social media plus a dose of imposter syndrome and loneliness and remembers high school being so much easier.

Self-Sabotaging Sally has a task list, a tower of worries and questions, and a nagging voice telling her that she could and should be so much more.

The Box is afraid of everything–asking for help, college, failing, your class, and not being perfect. The Box is scared and sad–Box just wants to stay, well, in a box.

Coming late to the party (of course) is Failure. Failure is scary and stinky and chews on the confidence of even the strongest student.

We all carry learning monsters with us. No one relishes the idea of failing or falling short in achieving a goal. These monsters, though, can be super-sized (think Incredible Hulk scary) when…

• we are in high stakes situations
• we are challenged by anxiety
• we are experiencing depressive symptoms or depression

As students look in their backpacks and see these super learning monsters staring back, they can respond in a variety of ways. We may see more absences, frustration with grades and class activities, withdrawal from group work or teams, perhaps some tears during office hour visits.

What can we do? How can we challenge students who need compassion and understanding?

• We can anticipate that ALL students bring learning monsters to the classroom.
• We can purposefully design safe spaces for learning.
• We can create small, scaffolded experiences to expand student knowledge of self and strategies to face their fears.

Challenge: Take some time to identify and name the learning monsters lurking behind and among your students. How do student behaviors relate to avoiding these creatures?

Next week, we’ll get out our flashlights and shine a light on strategies to expand student self awareness because learning monsters love nothing more than ‘not knowing’.