My teaching interests include microeconomic theory, health economics, environmental economics, political economy, and economic history. At the University of California, Irvine I have been a TA for the following courses:
Economics of the Environment I, Prof. Ty Robbins, Fall 2024; Fall 2020
Economics of the Environment II, Prof. Vellore Arthi, Winter 2021
Global Economy, Prof. George Sarraf, Spring 2021
Business Forecasting, Prof. Natalia Chernyshoff, Winter 2022
Political Institutions, Legal Systems, and Economic Development, Prof. Dan Bogart, Spring 2022; Winter 2023; Winter 2024
Introduction to Financial Investments, Prof. Raffaele Mari, Fall 2022
Health Economics, Prof. Marion Aouad, Spring 2024
Intermediate Economics I, Prof. Priyaranjan Jha, Fall 2023
Intermediate Economics II, Prof. Amjad Toukan, Spring 2024
My teaching philosophy incorporates real-world policy examples into my instruction to connect otherwise abstract theories to students’ lives. Additionally, I teach theoretical concepts and mathematical applications in tandem to reinforce each other. My goal is not solely for students to memorize material for tests but also to understand its significance in shaping sound economic policy.
I have served as a teaching assistant for Dan Bogart’s political economy course for three years, where I help students critically engage with research in political economy and cultivate their own research interests in the field. This role has involved encouraging students to read academic literature and think critically about this literature to develop unique perspectives on popular research topics. I assist students in developing strong thesis statements and in writing literature reviews on the topics they select.
Mentoring students has been a highlight of my teaching experience. I had the privilege of teaching an independent research class that provided ten undergraduate students the opportunity to learn about academic research, including how to develop a research question, assemble novel datasets, and analyze results. This course offered valuable research experience that enhanced their job and graduate school applications. One student, for whom I wrote a letter of recommendation, credited my mentorship as a key factor in her success.
My average course evaluations consistently exceed the average for the School of Social Sciences at UCI.
Sample of Student Reviews:
“Mark is definitely the best Econ TA I have had! He really is good at preparing us for our exams and really puts a lot of effort to make sure that he is teaching the concepts well. His presentations are clear and he is really good about keeping everything organized. I also really like how in with Mark's discussions, he doesn't make me feel dumb. I have had TAs and even professors like that before, and Mark is the opposite. He is pretty approachable and doesn't make me feel dumb for asking questions.”
“He knew everything perfectly. This TA was amazing, he had a perfect way of going through problems. He gave me so much confidence in learning. He always knew what to say and what to explain and how to go through the problem effectively. I expect this TA to be a great educator one day. He is already showing signs of great teaching potential. I hope other TA's can be similar to him!”
“I usually found that this one discussion helped me understand the material better than the professor could teach in one hour and twenty minutes. Very well spoken and provided great examples of applicable scenarios of problems or what was being reviewed. I really couldn't have made it out of this course without the discussions. Feedback from questions in class was great and participation was encouraged highly, making a great space to communicate our concern.”