Teaching

Teaching is my passion. I enjoy watching my students solve complex problems and learn new skills. I use a range of pedagogical techniques, including team-based learning, small group discussions, traditional lecture, and live demonstrations. In all of my courses, I stress the importance of skill development over content-specific knowledge, though of course the latter is also necessary.

My classroom environment is fun, conversational, and encourages active engagement. Students feel comfortable discussing difficult topics about inclusivity, race, gender, class, and disability. I encourage this environment by bringing energy and a sense of humor to each class, as well as by calling on specific students and reinforcing effort instead of results.

I especially enjoy teaching courses on statistics and research methodology. Students are often intimidated by these topics, especially by more mathematical treatments. However, by combining technical ideas with conceptual ‘big picture’ understanding, demonstrations, and relevant examples, I find students are able to thrive. As one example, all students leave my research courses with a strong sense of why we use statistics and how to conduct statistical analyses using R.

I take pride in providing research mentorship to help students meet their academic and career goals. I include undergraduate students in my research program and mentor them on independent projects. This gives undergraduate students research opportunities that are typically not available until graduate school. I hold students to a high standard and emphasize the development of professional skills. Students that have worked in my lab have gone on to graduate school in a range of programs.

Philosophy of Teaching

Sample Course Syllabi

Experimental Psychology

This course is designed to acquaint you with the methodological approach to psychological investigation. Although the course concentrates on methodology, statistics, and the writing of research reports, attention is also directed to such content areas as philosophy of science and ethics in research.

Adolescent Psychology

Growth and development of the adolescent from puberty to 21. Physical, cognitive, social, moral, and emotional development are examined. The organization of appropriate educational environments, including educational tests and measurement, both formal and informal, and their interpretation are considered. Field observation study of middle school age children is required.

Sample Assignments

Final Project in Experimental Psychology

This capstone project is designed for students to demonstrate their ability to find and evaluate empirical research, apply knowledge of research design and statistics, and write an academic paper using APA format.

Team Activity in Introductory Psychology

I use a modified version of team-based learning in many of my courses. This assignment is completed by a team of students after we study the brain. The assignment challenges students to apply what they have learned about brain regions, neurotransmitters, and basic neuropharmacology.

Sample Statistics Lessons

Review of Introductory Statistics

All students are required to take an Introductory Statistics course. This lesson is used as a refresher for relevant material and can serve as a brief introduction to R.

Review of ANOVA

This lesson comes from Experimental Psychology. By this point in the semester, students have a basic understanding of inferential statistics, hypothesis testing, and can use R.

Course Taught

Topic Course School
Introductory Psychology
Introduction to Psychology The University of Alabama
Introductory Psychology Maryville College
Introduction to Psychology Bellevue University
Statistics
Elementary Statistics The University of Alabama
Introductory Statistics Maryville College
R Programming in Psychology Maryville College
Research Methods
Experimental Research Laboratory The University of Alabama
Experimental Psychology Maryville College
Research Design Maryville College
Cognitive Psychology
Intellectual Disability: Brain and Cognition Maryville College
Cognitive Psychology Maryville College
Readings Course in Cognitive Psychology Maryville College
Developmental Psychology
Developmental Disabilities Maryville College
Human Development Bellevue University
Adolescent Psychology Maryville College
Adult Development and Aging Maryville College