School name: University of West Florida
Type of school: 4 year Public University
School locale: Pensacola, FL, USA
Is your role mostly in-person, hybrid, online (synchronous or asynchronous)? In-person and online asynchronous
For how many years have you taught psychology? 35 years
Classes you teach: Research methods; Social psychology
Specialization: Social Psychology
What size classes do you teach? 25-50 students
What do you know now about teaching that you wish you knew when you were starting? The goal is not to “cover the chapter” but rather use the content to engage students as they learn to think like psychological scientists.
Briefly tell us about your favorite lecture topic or course to teach. I like teaching about the types of heuristics we use in our thinking and how they can lead to biases and flawed decisions. This discussion leads to why we need to think like psychological scientists to answer our questions about human behavior.
What is your teaching philosophy in 8 words or fewer? My guiding philosophy is to provide students with meaningful educational experiences both within and outside the classroom.
What’s your workspace like? My office tends to be non-cluttered and welcoming. My office has two important things – a Keurig machine and a comfortable chair for students to sit by my desk as we discuss topics that often go beyond the course itself.
What is something you are currently focused on improving or changing in your teaching? I continually think about how my classes can better prepare students for post-baccalaureate success. I am constantly reassessing my learning activities and seeking out new ones that allow students to acquire desired knowledge while strengthening their employable skills.
What tech tool could you not live without? As someone who first started teaching with overhead transparencies and a chalkboard, I continue to appreciate the value of PowerPoint as a pedagogical tool. My slides tend to have minimal text, relevant illustrations, and thought-provoking images and memes to provide structure to students’ note-taking and to stimulate thinking about the course material.
