This site provides examples of instructional resources created in the Humanizing Online STEM Academy, a professional development program funded by the California Education Learning Lab and administered by the Foothill DeAnza Community College District.
Prior to embarking on this course, I carried with me a multitude of traumas and hardships stemming from my own undergraduate STEM journey. However, I lacked a profound understanding of the underlying causes behind why I found undergraduate STEM courses to be so distressing. It wasn't solely the complexity of the course content that posed difficulties for me; rather, it was the sense of being overlooked and reduced to a mere identification number on my student card. I felt as though I was perceived as a financial asset to the department rather than a valued individual. Interestingly, I found a striking contrast between my experiences in humanities courses and those in STEM. The humanities courses were delivered in a manner that humanized the learning experience, providing the crucial support necessary for me to persist in my pursuit of STEM aspirations. In my own pedagogical approach, I have endeavored to shield my students from feelings of isolation, aiming instead to foster an environment where they feel genuinely supported. This endeavor was not guided by a predetermined formula but rather by a reflection on the kind of supportive structure I wished for during my own academic journey. Participating in this professional development workshop has been immensely enlightening. Not only have I gained insights into how to effectively support my students, but I have also attained a deeper understanding of the challenges I faced during my undergraduate studies.
Having completed this workshop, I've gained a deeper insight into myself and identified areas for enhancing my own courses. An intriguing revelation I made about myself pertains to the challenges I faced during my undergraduate years, particularly the cultural disparity between a low-context and high-context culture. This workshop has heightened my awareness of my high-context cultural values and emphasized the importance of balancing my teaching approach within a low-context cultural setting. Furthermore, I've come to recognize through this course that I grapple with imposter syndrome. Now equipped with a term for this phenomenon, I am better equipped to assist my students in navigating similar feelings. Most significantly, the workshop underscored the significance of developing a humanizing course that prioritizes trust, presence, awareness, and empathy. These attributes create an environment where instructors can expect high-quality work while ensuring that students feel supported. Such an environment fosters growth in students' metacognitive awareness and understanding of the material. Referred to as warm demander pedagogy, I am committed to embodying this teaching style in my ongoing efforts as an educator.
In many regards, I've constrained myself to conform to what I perceived as the classic figure of a professor, holding back my true nature. However, I now possess a deeper comprehension of the significance of emotions in the learning process. My intention is to introduce a welcoming atmosphere in my face-to-face classes by incorporating gentle music from diverse sources and initiating discussions with students about their week. For my online courses, I aim to prioritize instructor presence and demonstrate vulnerability through empathy and storytelling. These approaches can foster a sense of trust among students, creating a safe environment where they feel comfortable making mistakes and engaging in class activities. When students feel valued, their capacity for learning is enhanced. I intend to clearly communicate in my syllabus and assignments that students are encouraged to embrace growth and learn from their mistakes. Additionally, I will actively encourage students to seek assistance from both myself and their peers. I firmly believe that employing these humanizing pedagogical strategies will enable me to embody a warm, yet demanding, approach and facilitate the production of high-quality work by my students.
My liquid syllabus offers a streamlined overview containing essential details for a successful first week of class. It includes both personal and professional insights into my background and teaching ethos, fostering the initial stages of trust-building with my students. Within this syllabus, there's a comprehensive course agreement and helpful support resources, underscoring my commitment to students' learning even before the course commences.
I chose my course card to reflect an internal combustion engine with colors that match the visual identity that I have created and maintained in my liquid syllabus and my Canvas home page. It puts the students in the mood from the first moment, and reflects what they can expect from this course.
The initial week's homepage for my class is intentionally straightforward. This simplicity ensures that students can easily locate the appropriate starting point without feeling overwhelmed by the course. Crucially, the homepage serves as a subtle signal of inclusivity, fostering a sense of social belonging among students. The primary aim is to initiate students into the course with a warm and inviting atmosphere.
The implementation of a "Getting to Know You Survey" conveys to students that the instructor values their individuality, consequently mitigating stereotype threat. This approach not only communicates the instructor's investment in the students' success but also allows for the identification of individuals who may require additional support. I incorporate such a survey within my orientation module to facilitate this process.
This icebreaker activity cultivates a feeling of belonging by encouraging students to connect through sharing their real-life experiences. I prompt students to discuss values that they feel important in their lives. Additionally, I ask the students to choose an object that relates to one of the values they picked and tell us a story about it. These inquiries create an environment where students feel at ease being selectively vulnerable with their peers. Ultimately, this activity enhances community bonding within the class.
A bumper video is a brief video utilized in various contexts to mitigate confusion or stress related to a particular topic or assignment. These videos serve multiple purposes, such as providing a concise overview of a new assignment, elucidating complex concepts, or introducing a fresh module. In my bumper video, I introduce students to the relevance of combustion in a World where renewable energy source utilization is on the rise.
Microlectures are succinct instructional sessions lasting 5-10 minutes, focusing on a specific topic to address a single learning objective. This approach is potent, as it allows for course content to be structured around each distinct learning objective. Consequently, students are spared the task of sifting through a lengthy 60-minute lecture to locate the topic they wish to review. Moreover, instructors can supplement microlectures with relevant reading materials and problem sets tailored to each learning objective. My microlecture features an introduction to the Compression Ignition Engine's working cycle in comparison with that of a Spark Ignition Engine.
