Humanizing Online STEM Showcase
Hamidreza Ghasemi Bahraseman, Engineering Instructor at San Diego Mesa College
On this website, you'll find samples of educational materials produced by the Humanizing Online STEM Academy. This program is supported by the California Education Learning Lab and managed by the Foothill DeAnza Community College District.
Reflections
Where I was.
Before the COVID pandemic, I had experience teaching online courses. However, the pandemic prompted me to enhance my online teaching skills. Despite the progress I made, I acknowledged that there was always room for growth and therefore, I decided to enroll in the Humanizing STEM Academy.
Where I am.
My expertise lies in creating captivating videos, informative lectures, and interactive assignments. To enhance my teaching approach, I have developed a liquid syllabus, introduced a Wisdom Wall project, produced a promotional video, revamped my course website and card, and improved my introductory survey and icebreaker activities. These resources empower students to showcase their authentic selves and express their individual perspectives through their engagement in the course.
Where I am going.
Understanding the importance of emotions in learning and how to incorporate them into the teaching structure is crucial. During exams and lab activities, I used to play instrumental music such as classic coffee jazz. In the future, I plan to enhance students' moods by playing study music and short comedies periodically. It would be fantastic to showcase diverse engineering role models such as black, LGBTQ+, and women engineers through short biographies. In my online courses, my aim is to establish a sense of instructor presence by relating to my students through empathy and storytelling, sharing my own vulnerabilities. To encourage growth and mistakes, In my syllabus and assignments, I will clearly state that students are welcome to seek assistance and support from both myself and their classmates. As an instructor who prioritizes students, I will consistently apply these principles to enhance all of my courses, whether they're online or in-person, with the goal of making the learning experience more personable.
Liquid Syllabus
The syllabus in its abridged format comprises a welcome video, a set of expectations for both the student and me, my teaching principles, a to-do list for the 1st week, and a variety of helpful resources.
Course Card
For the Course Card on Canvas, I chose to display an image of the atomic structure of metals.
This image displays a graph that was created by a program using MATLAB. MATLAB is a powerful tool for programming and comes with Graphical User Interfaces (GUIs) or apps that allow users to operate software applications with ease. With point-and-click control, users don't need to learn coding languages or enter complex commands to run the application.
Homepage
On my homepage, you will find all the necessary details regarding the Engineering Program course, including its description, instructor contact information, and office hours. Additionally, you can access important resources like pre-recorded video lectures and tutorials by scanning the QR code to our Instagram page. To sign up for Wiely and complete assignments, simply follow the tutorial clip provided.
Getting to Know You Survey
This survey will appear in the course introduction and will be one of the first activities participants will submit. I want new faculty to know I care about them and that I am there to support their success. Here are two sample questions from this survey:
What name would you like me to use when addressing you?
Sometimes I provide feedback using video. Would this be okay, or would you prefer written feedback every time?
By answering these questions, I can gain a deeper understanding of my students' needs, both as individuals and as a collective class. This will enable me to be a more effective instructor for everyone in the online course.
Wisdom Wall
A Wisdom Wall is a collection of "learning stories" recorded by students in prior classes of mine and listened to by students in my current class. At the beginning of the course, the students listen to past students' advice, and at the end of the semester, they post their own advice. Every semester, I invite students to contribute to the Wisdom Wall by asking them to share their advice for success with future students.
Course Bumper Video
Have you heard of a Course Bumper about engineering software? It's a short video, usually 1-3 minutes long, that focuses on the importance of engineering workshops and software. These workshops provide valuable experience in the complex world of industrial jobs, as well as the time and skills required for them. By participating in the workshop curriculum, you'll gain hands-on experience and learn about manufacturing processes and production technology courses over time. It's a great way to build your skills and knowledge!
Microlecture
This short lecture is on two types of loops In C programming, there are two types of loops: while loop and do-while loop. The while loop is an entry control loop as it checks the condition first before executing the loop's body. On the other hand, the do-while loop is an exit control loop, as it executes the loop's body first before checking if the condition is true or false.
This site is by Hamidreza Ghasemi 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.