Teaching Experiences

As an Assistant Professor at California State Dominguez Hills

I am in my third year of teaching at CSUDH. So far I taught Introductory Physics with Calculus 1 & 2 several times along with Quantum Mechanics 1 & 2, and Climate Action. In Fall 2024, I taught a course on Climate Action and had students do reflections, small presentations and build a portfolio. I also led three undergraduates through a directed research course related to using AI in education. In Spring 2024, I taught a course on MATLAB focused on E&M, as well as lead one student through an independent study. I employ small group learning in all my classes, to the extent possible. In my introductory courses, I can use more strategies, such as ask poll questions, provide many simulations, show visualizations, do basic demos in class. In my upper division courses, I do use the Socratic method while lecturing and then have them practice problems or concepts in small groups. In Fall 2023, I had students assess their own exams with the goal of emphasizing concepts and showing them how critical it is for them to go over their graded exams. I plan to try ungrading, project based learning, and other alternative forms of assessments going forward.

As an Adjunct Professor at Miami Dade College:

I taught two years using daily small group learning activities along with other cooperative learning techniques such as Jig-Saw and Round Robin. In Fall 2017 I taught two sections of Introduction to Astronomy, in Spring 2018 two sections of Energy in the Natural Environment, in Fall 2018 two sections Introduction to Astronomy and one section of Energy in the Natural Environment, in Spring 2019 one section of Energy in the Natural Environment, and in Summer 2019 (my last semester at MDC) one section of Energy in the Natural Environment. 

As a Teaching Assistant at Florida International University:

I co-taught two years of Introductory Physics, along side the professor and other learning assistants, using the research based pedagogy known as Modeling Instruction. I co-taught once section of Introductory Physics I & II (75 students), in Fall 2016 through Spring 2017, and one section of Introductory Physics I & II again (90 students) in Fall 2018 and Spring 2019.

As a Teaching Assistant at the University of Oklahoma: 

I co-taught a physics course in two summers with another Teaching Assistant. In Summer 2014 I taught the first half of Introductory Physics for Engineers II and in Summer 2015 I taught the first half of Introductory Physics for Engineers I. 

My teaching philosophy is built from all my experiences working with college students. I tutored at Palm Beach State College (PBSC) for six years, tutored for over 10 years, taught physics courses at five different institutions throughout the last twelve years. During my time at PBSC, I tutored many students, allowing me to learn how to communicate effectively with students and recognize the common errors they make. At the University of Oklahoma, I led small group discussion sections and co taught an introductory physics for Engineers course for two summers. My teaching experience at Florida International University (FIU), provided me with a background of teaching studio-based introductory physics courses, particularly the pedagogy known as modeling instruction. At Miami Dade College (MDC), I built a curriculum utilizing research based small group learning strategies for two courses: Astronomy and Energy and the Natural Environment. At California State University Dominguez Hills (CSUDH) I have taught introductory physics courses with calculus, Quantum Mechanics I & II, Computational Physics, and Climate Action. As an assistant professor at CSUDH, I have extended my pedagogies to upper division courses like Quantum Mechanics I & II and Computational Physics.

When I teach, my primary goals are to promote an interest in science; teach students how science relates to their everyday life; keep students engaged in class by having them frequently collaborate with their peers; and provide opportunities for understanding science intuitively. I want my students to be interested in the subjects they are learning, since it is important for students’ identity, motivation, attitude, effort, and success. As an instructor, I strive to create a learning environment that promotes student interest, because I love science and want students to love it too. I make science personal by pointing out its relevance to their culture and everyday life. To promote student engagement I employ student centered approaches, where students work on pre-designed activities that involve them talking scientifically with one another, typically in small groups of 4 to 6 students. For more advanced courses, I focus more on building the students' conceptual understanding of the topic, as many students are already psychologically invested in their majors and need to learn more rigorous content. To do this, I do every step of every problem for the students, constantly stopping and asking if they have questions, that way I don't lose them and stay within their zone of proximal development. 

This past year, I have extended my repertoire of science teaching to include new educational technologies & equity oriented forms of assessment. To improve student participation in small groups for my larger introductory courses, I use iClickers to assess the multiple poll questions we do every class. The prevalent use of large language models such as ChatGPT and Chat Bing, have pushed me to incorporate them into upper division course projects, which seems to be a win-win, since students save time and still learn a lot about their topics, as is evident when they present. When evaluating exams, I use a 5 point equity oriented grading system but this year I am also adding a self-assessment approach that is more focused on students making corrections and assessing themselves. My primary goal as an instructor is to build students up and for them to learn as much physics as possible about physics, so I am always looking for a better way to do that. Lastly, I am working towards decolonizing my physics courses, by making sure that my slides have pictures that represent everybody and not overemphasizing warfare in physics (i.e. just 1 or 2 gun examples, no more). There is a hidden curriculum in many subjects taught today and I am working towards becoming more aware of it, that way I can eliminate majoritarian stories from my courses.