Teaching Philosophy
I have been teaching with various levels of responsibility for 6 years at the University of Minnesota. Through these various courses and positions, I have developed my personal teaching philosophy. You can read my teaching philosophy statement, which I summarize here.
I believe the primary role of a teacher at a college or university is that of a motivator. A professor's job is to facilitate learning in the student. The students will learn much more on their own than any teacher can teach. However, they will not be inclined to put forth the effort to learn on their own if they are not excited or interested in the material. Motivation will provide this interest.
Motivation can be provided in many ways. Being an enthusiastic teacher who is knowledgeable about the subject is perhaps the best way to motivate. Using active learning techniques, classroom assessment with timely feedback, and cooperative learning are other ways to engage students in the classroom. I use a variety of teaching strategies to motivate students and to allow students with various learning styles to succeed.
Sample Teaching Documents
- Sample Syllabus from Precalculus I, Fall 2005.
- Fictional Syllabus created for Preparing Future Faculty class.
- Sample Midterm Exam and solutions from Precalculus I, Fall 2005
- Sample Midterm Exam and solutions from Short Calculus, Summer 2003
- Sample Homework Assignment and solutions from Probability Theory Including Measure Theory, spring 2003
- Sample Quiz and solutions from College Algebra and Probability, Fall 2001
- Sample Mathematica Lab from IT Multivariable Calculus and Vector Analysis, Spring 2004
Teaching Experience
| Spring 2006 | Teaching Assistant | Math 1572H | IT Honors Calculus II | Teaching assistant for two small sections of honors calculus intended for IT (engineering-type) students. Gave quizzes, went over homework, did examples, graded homework, graded exams. Also graded class project involving calculation of rocket firing times and intensities for satellite motion about Mars. |
| Fall 2005 | Lecturer | Math 1051 | Precalculus I | Lectured course content to 100 students, wrote exams, assigned homework, supervised 4 recitation sections under two TAs |
| Spring 2005 | Teaching Assistant | Math 1281 | Calculus with Biological Emphasis II | Teaching assistant for two small sections (15 students). Gave quizzes, went over homework, did examples, graded homework, graded exams. |
| Fall 2004 | Lecturer | Math 1151 | Precalculus II | Lectured course content to 190 students, wrote exams, assigned homework, supervised 5 recitation sections under three TAs. |
| Spring 2004 | Teaching Assistant and Computer Workshop Leader | Math 2374 | IT Multivariable Calculus and Vector Analysis | Ran recitation section, graded homework, gave examples. Ran computer lab sessions using Mathematica labs, graded lab writeups. |
| Fall 2003 | Teaching Assistant and Computer Workshop Leader | Math 2374 | IT Multivariable Calculus and Vector Analysis | Ran recitation section, graded homework, gave examples. Ran computer lab sessions using Mathematica labs, graded lab writeups. |
| Summer 2003 | Instructor | Math 1142 | Short Calculus | Lectured course content to 24 students, gave quizzes, wrote exams, graded homework and writeup problems, scheduled class pace. Acted as only instructor for class. |
| Spring 2003 | Recitation Instructor and Grader | Math 8652 | Probability Theory Including Measure Theory | Ran recitation section, gave examples, wrote homework solutions for graduate-level class. Graded homework and final exam. |
| Fall 2002 | Teaching Assistant and Computer Workshop Leader | Math 2373 | IT Linear Algebra and Differential Equations | Ran recitation section, graded homework, gave examples. Ran computer lab sessions using MATLAB, graded lab writeups. |
| Spring 2001 | Teaching Assistant and Computer Workshop Leader | Math 2373 | IT Linear Algebra and Differential Equations | Ran recitation section, graded homework, gave examples. Ran computer lab sessions using MATLAB, graded lab writeups. |
| Fall 2001 | Teaching Assistant | Math 1031 | College Algebra and Probability | Ran discussion sections, graded homework, gave examples, gave review sessions. |
| Summer 2001 | Instructor | Math 1142 | Short Calculus | Lectured course content to 24 students, gave quizzes, wrote exams, graded homework, scheduled class pace. Acted as only instructor for class. |
| Spring 2001 | Teaching Assistant | Math 1142 | Short Calculus | Ran discussion sections, graded homework, gave examples, gave review sessions. |
| Fall 2000 | Teaching Assistant | Math 1151 | Precalculus II | Ran discussion sections, graded homework, gave examples, gave review sessions. |