I had never taught an online course before the covid-19 pandemic forced everyone to begin online teaching. Prior to March 2020, I had recorded a total of 2 online lectures when I had to finish out the semester after the birth of both of my daughters.... and let's just say that in my course evaluations, a student wrote "online teaching is not your strong suite." I was determined to improve my online teaching skills once the pandemic hit. That first semester, I took some steps to transition my course to be a better fit for the online learning environment. More specifically, I broke down my in-class lectures to more manageable bite-size "lecture snippets," each with an associated comprehension "quizlet" (yes, I created new words!) Feedback from students in spring 2020 was really positive, but I knew I could do better. During summer 2020 I participated in a teaching workshop put on by my University's Center for Teaching and Learning, and at this workshop I dipped my toes into the ocean of "Humanizing" courses - and I knew this was exactly what I needed to do to improve my course! When Kim Vincent-Layton, the instructor from the summer workshop, mentioned to me that there might be an opportunity to participate in the Online Humanizing Academy the following summer, I was so excited to apply and increase my skills in this important field.
My teaching philosophy has continually evolved since I began teaching at the University level in 2013. If you had told my previous self that I would be making welcoming course videos, recording micro-lectures and sample problems, creating discussions using audio and video technology, and using a warm demander pedagogy, I would have laughed. But now I see these practices not only as valuable, but as imperative pedagogical tools that not only promote equity, belonging, and trust in my virtual classroom, but also are anti-racist.
As a younger female professor, I believed I needed to put on a tough outer shell in the classroom and uphold "rigid expectations" so that students wouldn't take advantage of my kindness/vulnerability (my Academy facilitator helped me understand that what I have experienced is called "stereotype" or "identity" threat, and it is what many students in our classroom experience, as well). But what I've realized in the past year is that this was a terrible misconception I held onto for much too long. Given the nature of the courses I teach, and the fact that Humboldt State will soon become the next polytechnic within the state of California, I am confident that I will return to in-person lectures, labs and field trips. However, the warm demander pedagogy is not just for online courses - it's for all courses! I will use many of the skills I've developed in this Academy even if/when I return to the physical classroom. I am excited to continue to transform my teaching using these humanizing practices.