So my microbiology had their first exam last Thursday. It wasn’t pretty. The class average was a 67. Ugh. There was one person who did awesome, and a few that did ok, but the majority of the class scored right around the average. I was really hoping for spectacular results Read more…
This semester I got the crazy idea to try flipping my microbiology classroom. I have read several articles espousing the benefits of flipping (see this post) and it seems like the solution to my student engagement problems. Perhaps I should have waited until the Fall term so that I had Read more…
Yesterday we started our Spring term. I am teaching the same courses that I taught last semester, Microbiology for Health Sciences and Introductory Biology (non-majors). I am doing a major course overhaul for Microbiology (the subject of future posts I’m sure) but I am leaving the Intro Bio course alone Read more…
As a teacher and a parent of a pre-kindergarden student, the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary on Friday breaks my heart. I can’t keep myself from clicking on tribute pages on CNN.com and looking at those sweet innocent faces and reading the stories of the heroic teachers. Collectively, our country Read more…
The last time I wrote a post I talked about why textbooks may become obsolete (see post here). Today I’d like to tell you why I still rely heavily upon them today. I teach two broad introductory courses, one is a general biology course for non-science majors and the other Read more…
Are we reaching a point in higher education in which textbooks are no longer necessary? So much information is freely available on the internet, why make students spend $100+ on a brick of paper that they might open once during a final exam cram session? There are a variety Read more…
Photo source: http://www.flickr.com/photos/frankula/5824384458/sizes/m/in/photostream/ The internet and technology are here to stay. I firmly believe that as teachers we must choose to embrace them or we will be left out in the cold. The landscape of education is constantly changing. We are called to be agile and adaptable. Still, I continue Read more…
Some days I just don’t feel like teaching anymore. Don’t get me wrong, I love my job and I find a lot of fulfillment in helping my students to be successful, but some days are better than others. I sometimes find myself asking “Why bother?” when many of my students Read more…
This week I’ve been at a regional conference for microbiology. Although most of the talks and presentations have focused on research and applied science, we did spend some time yesterday morning on microbiology education. We discussed several strategies for improving microbiology education including collaborative group work, cross disciplinary studies and Read more…
My friends, I must warn you. We are in the midst of an epidemic of epic proportions. Our classrooms are ground zero. The zombie apocalypse is upon us. Every day, more and more of our students are becoming zombies. Not the brain eating, Walking Dead variety, but the mindless, Read more…