Teaching
Why Do I Teach? "A life is not important except in the impact that it has on other lives." - Jackie Robinson
The Jackie Robinson quote above summarizes why I teach. Indeed, I am extremely passionate about teaching because I feel that it is the best way for me to use my passion for mathematics in a way that directly impacts people.
How Do I Teach? "The only way to learn mathematics is to do mathematics." - Paul Halmos
The Paul Halmos quote above summarizes how I strive to teach mathematics. Although it is important for an instructor to give some explanations of concepts and demonstrations of skills, ultimately I believe that my job as an instructor is to facilitate learning in my students rather than attempt to implant knowledge into their brains.
As a sports fan, I think of an analogy to coaching: A coach cannot make their players better by just showing them the proper techniques or by telling them about different strategies. Although this can be a useful starting point, the players ultimately must practice the skills themselves if they hope to improve. Thus, a coach's primary role is to facilitate opportunities for players to practice their skills and provide feedback to help them grow along the way. Likewise, as a mathematics instructor, my primary role is to facilitate opportunities for my students to discover and practice mathematics, frequently providing constructive feedback along the way. While this oftentimes involves myself explaining new ideas and demonstrating skills, I strive to give my students as many opportunities to learn on their own as I can.
Professional Development
I served as a peer mentor under Dr. Sean Yee through the peer mentorship program in the mathematics department at the University of South Carolina (USC) for the 2022-2023 academic year. This was a super rewarding experience from which I grew tremendously! See some of my reflection on the experience here.
In January 2023, I completed the Preparing Future Faculty (PFF) professional development program through the Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE) at USC. I plan to further complete the Preparing Future Faculty with Distinction in Teaching (PFF Plus) program before graduation.
In February 2023, I took and completed an asynchronous online course taught by Dr. Gloria Washington titled Teaching Online for Graduate Students through the CTE at USC.
I have earned Certificates of Completion in the following areas through the CTE by attending a series of workshops in each category. The "training record" for each provides a list of the specific workshops I participated in.
Courses Taught
Below is a list of the courses that I've taught, along with links to their syllabi/descriptions. Please feel free to contact me if you'd like to see/use any of my resources (LaTeX files and/or PDF's).
As an Instructor of Record at University of South Carolina
Fall 2023: Math-151, Calculus Workshop I (two sections)
Spring 2023: Math-111, Basic College Mathematics
Fall 2022: Math-111I, Intensive Basic College Mathematics
Summer 2022: Math-122, Calculus for Business Administration and Social Sciences (synchronous online)
Spring 2022: Math-122, Calculus for Business Administration and Social Sciences
Fall 2021: Math-170, Finite Mathematics (synchronous online)
Summer 2021: Math-170, Finite Mathematics
Spring 2021: Math-111, Basic College Mathematics
Fall 2020: Math-115, Precalculus
As a Teaching Assistant at University of South Carolina
Summer 2020: Math-141, Calculus I (asynchronous online) (Instructor: McKenzie Black)
Spring 2020: Math-142, Calculus II (half in-person, half synchronous online) (Instructor: Dr. Shaoyun Yi)
Fall 2019: Math-142, Calculus II (Instructor: Dr. Paula Vasquez)
As a Peer Learning Associate at Gettysburg College
Spring 2019: Math-201/301, Introduction to/Intermediate Research in Mathematics (Instructor: Dr. Béla Bajnok)
Spring 2019: Math-215, Abstract Mathematics I (Instructor: Dr. Béla Bajnok)
Fall 2018: Math-215, Abstract Mathematics I (Instructor: Dr. Béla Bajnok)
Spring 2018: Math-215, Abstract Mathematics I (Instructor: Dr. Béla Bajnok)
Fall 2017: Math-201/301, Introduction to/Intermediate Research in Mathematics (Instructor: Dr. Béla Bajnok)
Fall 2017: Math-215, Abstract Mathematics I (Instructor: Dr. Béla Bajnok)
Spring 2017: Math-215, Abstract Mathematics I (Instructor: Dr. Béla Bajnok)
Fall 2016: Math-112 H., Calculus II (Honors) (Instructor: Dr. Béla Bajnok)