Bao Vue, Associate Professor, Bakersfield College
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.
Reflections
I recall teaching an online class as a Teaching Assistant, particularly teaching laboratory courses online, which proved challenging for both myself and my students. Since the process was entirely new to me at the time, I wasn't aware of many guidelines or methods for humanizing the experience for new students taking general chemistry. The lack of interaction with students significantly impacted their transition back to in-person laboratory sessions. Although tools for online classes have slowly developed, since I returned to teaching in person, I haven't had the opportunity to learn or pay much attention to these available tools.
After completing this STEM Academy training course, I have acquired numerous valuable experiences and skills. Specifically, I have learned how to create videos, a skill I had been interested in acquiring prior to taking this course. However, prior to this STEM Academy training, I lacked both the opportunity and guidance to learn this skill. Of particular significance, I frequently experienced nervousness when recording myself in videos for public viewing. Nonetheless, through this training, I have successfully overcome this anxiety and now feel more comfortable sharing videos with my students.
I have already shared some of the videos I created during this course with my current students and received positive feedback. This training has equipped me with valuable skills and knowledge that will prove beneficial to both my current and future students.
Furthermore, the development of a liquid syllabus as an initial step towards humanizing my teaching approach, which I learned in this course, is another valuable tool I have acquired. I am confident that this tool will be advantageous in my future classes as well.
For my future classes, I plan to utilize the liquid syllabus I developed during this training to allow my students to become acquainted with me before the class begins. Additionally, allowing students to complete a "getting to know you" survey will help me understand and know my students better before class, enabling us to establish mutual understanding. This will help establish trust and foster a more inclusive environment for them.
Furthermore, I intend to create more micro and bumper videos explaining difficult concepts to share with my students. These videos will aid in their comprehension of complex topics and provide them with the opportunity to review the material after lectures if they encounter difficulty understanding it the first time.
Another important strategy I will implement is sending kindness cue emails more frequently to encourage my students. Despite having in-person interactions during class, sending reminders to make students feel understood and relatable is crucial. The humanizing tools I acquired from this course will provide invaluable experience and skills that I can apply in my teaching endeavors.
Liquid Syllabus
My liquid syllabus serves as both a personal and academic introduction to my students. The instructor video aims to provide my students with a glimpse of who I am beyond just being their instructor, fostering a mentor/mentee relationship that extends beyond the traditional student-instructor dynamic. In addition to this personal touch, the syllabus also includes key aspects to help students prepare for class beforehand. This includes information on required items, guidance on how to prepare for the first week of class, and helpful tips to assist them along the way. By incorporating these elements, I aim to create an environment where students feel supported and prepared as they embark on their academic journey.
Course Card
I selected this image for my course because it vividly illustrates how chemistry permeates every aspect of our daily lives, making it an integral part of our existence. Whether we realize it or not, chemistry is omnipresent, influencing everything from the food we eat to the clothes we wear. From the moment we wake up to the time we go to bed, we are constantly interacting with chemical processes, from brewing our morning coffee to brushing our teeth before bed. This image serves as a powerful reminder of the interconnectedness between chemistry and our daily experiences, highlighting its significance in shaping the world around us. By recognizing the ubiquity of chemistry in our lives, we gain a deeper appreciation for its impact and relevance, empowering us to better understand and engage with the world around us.
Home Page
The image portrays diversity and inclusion through the representation of cartoon humans alongside various elements of chemistry, including concepts and experimental setups. It demonstrates how people from all backgrounds can be included in the field of chemistry. Often perceived as a challenging subject, chemistry can become more enjoyable, exciting, and relatable for everyone when presented in this inclusive manner. On my homepage, I have developed links to different pages to ensure that information is easily accessible to students, regardless of their background or level of familiarity with the subject. This approach aims to create a welcoming and supportive learning environment where all students feel valued and empowered to succeed.
Getting to Know You Survey
The survey questions are designed to help me get to know my students before our in-person meetings. By gathering a general understanding of the students who I will be teaching in the upcoming class, I can be prepared for the broad range of knowledge levels and diversity within my class. This allows me to focus on delivering a teaching style that meets the needs of everyone. The questions cover a spectrum, from first-generation college graduates to the extent of chemistry exposure they've had. Additionally, by asking about their support needs before we meet, students know that I value their input and willingness to communicate their needs. In order for me to better assist them, they need to trust me enough to share where they are struggling. Creating these survey questions allows me to gain insight into their initial needs and concerns.
Wisdom Wall
Wisdom Wall Tour Video
This is where I encourage my current students to share their exam study experiences. By sharing their best study techniques and reflecting on what didn't work during exams, they're contributing to an inclusive learning environment for both current and future students. This collaborative approach enables all students to connect and learn from each other's mistakes and effective studying techniques, thereby helping incoming students better prepare and adapt their learning styles. My goal is to foster an inclusive and diverse learning environment where all students feel supported and empowered to succeed.
Bumper Video
In this bumper video, I introduce a lecture concept that will be covered in my current chemistry course. Traditional in-class lectures often lack specific examples, making it challenging for students to grasp complex concepts. By utilizing this video, I can effectively illustrate the concept of specific heat capacity through animations and images, accompanied by my narrative. This visual aid enhances comprehension by providing relatable examples and facilitating easier visualization of the concept. Many students require visual aids to fully understand complex topics, and by incorporating animations and pictures into the video, I address this need. The positive feedback received from students after posting this video underscores its effectiveness in enhancing learning. Encouraged by this response, I plan to create more videos covering other difficult concepts in chemistry to further support student understanding and engagement.
Microlecture
In this microlecture, I chose to create a video on Calorimetry, a concept that we'll be covering in class soon. I want to produce a video that my students can utilize and rewatch multiple times to reinforce their understanding of the concept. Specifically, I structured the lecture with an illustration of a problem to facilitate easier comprehension for my students. Additionally, I plan to post the video for my current students to watch at their own convenience. I believe this video will be beneficial for my students because several of them have requested video resources in the past, but I haven't had the opportunity to create them until now.
The video is longer than the expected time because I want to cover topics that require additional review for my students, and I believe it will make the whole picture clearer and easier to understand.
This site is by Bao Vue and is shared with a Creative Commons-Attribution-Non-Commercial 4.0 license. Creation of this content was made possible with funding from the California Education Learning Lab.