While working for the University of Texas at Dallas, Tarrant County College, and for an education technology company, I have experienced teaching at a variety of levels, whether in a traditional or non-traditional class setting. At MobLab I worked with instructors teaching a wide variety of classes and helped understand and meet their needs. I also created pedagogical content to help instructors more effectively get desired learning outcomes. At the University of Texas at Dallas I taught Principles of Microeconomics for five semesters as a graduate student, and currently am teaching a Master’s Econometrics class. I am also teaching 3 online and 3 in person sections of Principles of Macroeconomics at Tarrant County College, along with one section of Principles of Microeconomics.
· Students are my first priority in teaching. I always make time to help students, especially with the increasing time demands of collegiate life. I am always open to working with students if scheduling issues occur, whether it is setting up a meeting outside of my office hours for help on an assignment, or scheduling an alternative time for an exam. Another important aspect of prioritizing students is making expectations of what I require on exams and assignments clear. Clear communication is one of the things I value the most, and it is part of being fair to students in terms of grading.
· Constantly working on a more engaging and adaptable teaching style. I frequently break up lecture with different activities and demonstrations that address to different learning styles, which help students learn to adapt to different learning environments they may encounter in a job setting. These present a more interactive and innovative way of learning economics. Incorporating active learning activities, like games commonly used in experimental economics, has proven effective in helping students do this. Students enjoy the activities in class, and it helps reinforce core concepts in a way that lecturing may not.
· Commitment to diversity and inclusion. At the University of Texas at Dallas and Tarrant County College I teach a very diverse set of students, which has greatly improved my understanding and implementation of different teaching methods to address the needs of my students and challenge them to improve in an effective way. This has deepened my commitment to diversity, and understanding of the importance of strong connections within the community.
· Rigorous coursework. One of my most important duties in teaching an introductory course is to prepare my students for the successive intermediate course. This requires structured presentation of theory and frequent invocation of real world examples to show its application. This helps ground the sometimes abstract concepts in reality and connects the in class discussion to current events and policies.
· Helping students develop critical thinking skills. Critical thinking is an essential skill in being successful in any field. Students frequently ask questions about market behavior that cannot be captured by the basic models they learn. I use these opportunities to guide students to the different assumptions that underlie the models, let them question how they limit analysis, and how changing or weakening these assumptions might allow for more complex analysis.
· Continuing to develop and improve my own teaching methods. I encourage my students to provide feedback on my teaching style/ methods in an attempt to better myself and to hopefully provide a more enriching classroom environment.
Teaching Interests
While my main exposure to teaching is at the introductory level, I have greatly enjoyed introducing students to economics, and hopefully have transferred some of my passion and enjoyment for the subject. I would love to have the opportunity to teach courses in my main fields of experimental economics, applied microeconometrics, labor economics, and health economics. It would also be wonderful to teach managerial economics, game theory, industrial organization, econometrics, statistics, or applied microeconomics courses at either the undergraduate or graduate level. I am also interested in teaching macroeconomics at the introductory or intermediate level.
Anonymous Student Nominations for Outstanding Teaching Comet Award, School of Economic, Political, and Policy Sciences, Received Spring 2016
"Professor Roby has been a great professor to myself and many others. There have been two unfortunate occasions for myself that conflicted with the class and he was more than reasonable and happy to help me out with my situation. Compared to my Macro Econ class, he's been very hands-on with the students with interaction and assistance. He even offered to meet me at UTD at a time where he normally isn't there, and that it wouldn't be a problem. Even if he hadn't assisted me with these problems, I would have still nominated him based on his teaching."
"Professor Roby does a great job of incorporating comedy and activities into his lectures to engage all of the students. He is helpful inside and outside of the classroom and is always willing to answers questions whenever they arise. He has made the stereotype of microeconomics appear false by proving that it can be a very fun and interesting topic. He is a great lecturer and teacher, and I would definitely take him for another class in the future."
"Professor Roby is a phenomenal instructor and very knowledgeable about his subject. He knows how to engage students and is a genuinely consistent and appreciative mentor. One of the finest teachers I have had to date. Highly recommended."
"Mr. Roby genuinely cares about his students. Whenever I have gone into his office to ask questions he has always been more than willing to help. He is not condescending at all but genuinely wants his students to understand the information. He does so in a way that is relatable to his students."
"A professor who is enthusiastic about his job. He delivers his lectures to students effectively, and makes sure that there is no ambiguity with concepts he teaches in class."
"Great teacher. Provides help for any student that needs it"