I am constantly striving to improve my teaching. I believe that teaching is a dynamic process in which collecting feedback in and out of the classroom is important. Every year I attend the Joint Mathematics Meeting of the American Mathematic Society (AMS) and Mathematical Association of America (MAA) at which I attend as many pedagogy talks as time allows. Recently, in the past 2 years, I have co-organized MAA Themed Special Sessions on using technology in teaching so as to encourage some of the types of talks I wish to hear at such conferences. The response has been enthusiastic and overwhelming and I have learned an enormous amount of useful practices which I have brought into my classroom. I look forward to this year’s talks in Denver in January 2020!
As co-organizer of the faculty seminar for Opening Gateways, it is my responsibility to design a series of pedagogy seminars which convey best practices for teaching and learning utilizing innovative methodology and technology. I also have had the responsibility as WAC co-coordinator to design faculty workshops for incorporating writing best practices into the classroom.
One of my favorite seminars was by Lee Sheldon. I had read his book The Multiplayer Classroom and hoped to learn more and so I invited him to come present on behalf of Opening Gateways. Since then, I have been revising my MAT 2440 assignments to be group assignments with the idea that, next time I teach the course, it will be in a game format for the semester. I also have enjoyed learning from Kathleen Offenholley, of the CUNY Games Network, and so have implemented her ideas for MAT 1275 applications such as the “Spread of a Rumor” which my students appreciated very much.
My experiences in both of these roles has completely transformed my teaching and opened my eyes to many effective strategies which I draw from. I continue to develop and experiment with lesson plans, activities, projects and assignments stemming from my experiences.
Another opportunity which influenced my views on teaching and my methodology was my participation in the 2014 SENCER Summer Institute.
“SENCER courses and programs strengthen student learning and interest in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) by connecting course topics to issues of critical local, national, and global importance.”
It is there I understood the value of civic engagement which was in large part why I took on the role to found the CUNY Youth Ambassador Program and Partnerships for Quality Education. It is also where, importantly, I met my great friend and collaborator Dr. Frank Wattenberg of the USMA West Point math department. Since then, he and I have collaborated on several projects, including a major collaborative NSF IUSE grant proposal, two NSF poster presentations and have visited each other’s campuses several times for presenting and sharing teaching ideas.
