I am inspired by the challenge of communicating topics in chemistry effectively.
My teaching philosophy is straightforward: teach students in a way that maximizes their ability to think critically – with enthusiasm, empathy, and a high degree of clarity. I am a motivated person and when I am put in the position to motivate others through mentorship and teaching, I tailor my efforts to meet their strengths and capabilities.
In the 2022 and 2023 Fall semesters, I taught Biobased Polymers and Bioproducts (BEST 300) during the fall semester at University of British Columbia. This course focuses on the methods nature uses to synthesize biobased polymeric materials, as well as understanding their physical and chemical properties, and biodegradability. This course focuses on how these biobased polymers are transformed using polymer processing techniques and how the polymer structure-property relationships offer potential for these nature derived polymers in our daily life. With continuing efforts in transforming the global petro-economy back into a bioeconomy, biobased polymeric materials have once again received worldwide attention and it is crucial to foster knowledge growth of biobased polymeric materials for future generations.
Past Teaching Experience.
Assistant Professor at Mount Allison University.
During the 2021-2022 school year, I taught Organic Chemistry I as well as the subsequent Organic Chemistry II course. I also developed a new course in Bioorganic Chemistry which presented the principles of organic chemistry as they apply to biochemical problems. In addition to this, I lead the year-long “Current Advances in Chemistry and Biochemistry” course which aimed to provide mentorship, teach research skills and introduce senior honours thesis students to cutting-edge research through organization of a departmental seminar series.
Teaching Assistant at University of Toronto
During my PhD, I had the opportunity to work as teaching assistant and laboratory demonstrator at different levels and across disciplines within the Department of Chemistry. As a more senior student, I worked with my PhD advisor to adapt advanced Polymer Chemistry courses for online learning in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Increase student belonging in the classroom.
Challenge students’ perception of what makes a “scientist” by featuring counter-stereotypical examples in Scientific Spotlights highlighting how they influenced you. Read Prof. Helen Tran’s story here.
Just-In-Time is an interactive teaching strategy that allows instructors to adapt upcoming lesson flows in response to students’ prior knowledge and understanding of concepts you previously covered. This is an active and engaging learning technique that has increased the feelings of autonomy for my students.
For practical advice to help maximize the potential for an academic course delivered online, I highly recommend this exceptional handbook on remote teaching written by Profs. Alison Flynn and Jeremy Kerr. Equity and inclusion are essential threads running through each section of this extraordinary guide!