Podcast #2
In this episode we talk with Jim Rolf from the Yale Math Department about flipping classes, the role of failure in the classroom and why it is that we teach.
Evidence-based Higher Education at UC Davis' iAMSTEM Hub
About an hour ago I attended a talk by Marco Molinaro that was so inspiring I had to share about it right away. Dr. Molinaro is the director of an organization at UC Davis (the iAMSTEM Hub) that uses research and analytics to improve the quality of undergraduate education at the university. You might have read the recent New York Times article on innovation in STEM teaching at Davis–Dr. Molinaro’s shop had a lot to do with that innovation.
Guest Appearance on Teaching in Higher Ed Podcast
I’m a big fan of Bonni Stachowiak’s Teaching in Higher Ed podcast and was thrilled to be a guest on this week’s episode. Among many other things, we talked about how to get student feedback and how to use this feedback to improve your class.
When snow days and sick days collide
Between my daughters’ school cancellations, their getting sick, and spending the weekend sick as a dog myself, it’s been a tough last couple weeks. Work has suffered, but not by as much as it could have. Three things have been getting me through the rough patches: technology, fun, and most of all, my students.
Podcast #1
And so it begins, the Teach Better Podcast. In the first episode, we talk about what these podcasts are going to be like, and give you a free sample of us talking about teaching.
Coming Soon: The Teach Better Podcast
I often listen to podcasts after my kids go to bed as I putter around the house washing dishes or doing laundry. Some are about technology (ATP and The Talk Show) or sports (The BS Report) or science (Star Talk) and some cut across categories (The Nerdist). Over time, you build a “relationship” with hosts of a good show and look forward to hearing them say interesting things and talk with interesting guests.
The Best-Laid Plans Often Go Awry
I take great pride in being able to synchronize the different pieces of a long class, adjust on the fly, and come into the finish line exactly on time. Last year I failed more often than I succeeded when teaching my advanced economics seminar on human capital in Latin America, and this semester was (is) going to be different. My plan was to reduce the amount of material students present and replace my mini-lectures on advanced statistical methods with videos the students watch outside class. And yet my time management in class today was still a train wreck.
Teaching High School Students at the Yale Model UN
This morning I had great fun lecturing to high school students visiting Yale for the 41st annual Yale Model United Nations. I have some experience teaching undergraduates, graduate students, and even physicians, but I was very curious about how that would translate to high school.
Sharing My First Two Econometrics Mini-lectures
On Saturday night I recorded and posted my first two econometrics mini-lectures. I had decided to do this for my seminar on human capital to free up time for classroom discussion, and give my students resources they could refer to as they read research articles that used those methods. It seemed like such a good idea as I was updating the syllabus, but then I actually had to create two of them for this week’s reading.