Teaching

Bio 1113 - Biological Sciences: Energy Transfer & Development

• Role: Instructor of Record
• Semesters Taught: Autumn 2021
• Institution: The Ohio State University
• Enrollment: 23
• Course Content: Exploration of biology and biological principles; evolution and the origin of life, cellular structure and function, bioenergetics, and genetics
• Teaching Role: My responsibilities included leading recitation discussions to reinforce lecture concepts, providing directions on how to complete lab exercises, and guiding students as they worked through lab exercises. The progress of students was mointored through discussion questions and grading of lab quizzes and exams. I emphasized critical thinking, oral communication, and analytical skills throughout the semester, which cumulated in a virus poster presentation.

Selected Student Comments

“Julia made bio lab a lot of fun! I enjoyed going to lab and participating in the experiments. She really knew how to teach to the individual student and give students the specific attention that they needed.”

“Julia is a very knowledgeable, kind, and professional TA. She does a really good job of preparing for lab, presenting material, and always offering to clarify more as needed. She checks on each group periodically throughout each lab period, and works to make sure everyone is successful. Her office hours are also very helpful.”

“I enjoyed coming to labs with Julia because it was always fun and engaging”

Teaching Evaluations

At the end of the semester, students were invited to complete an anonymous Student Evaluation of Instructor (SEI) survey. For each of the following questions, students were asked whether they (1) strongly disagree (2) disagree (3) neutral (4) agree or (5) strongly agree with the statement.

1. The subject matter of this course was well organized
2. This course was intellectually stimulating
3. This instructor was genuinely interested in teaching
4. The instructor encouraged students to think for themselves
5. The instructor was well prepared
6. The instructor was genuinely interested in helping students
7. I learned a great deal from this instructor
8. The instructor created an atmosphere conducive to learning
9. The instructor communicated the subject matter clearly

The chart below summarizes the student responses to questions 1 through 9.

Question 10 prompted students to rate the instructor on a scale from 1 (Poor) to 5 (Excellent). I recieved a mean score of 4.50, which is above average when compared to similarily sized classes in the biology department (4.26), College of Arts & Sciences (4.37) and University (4.40). Figure 2 below summarizes the responses to Q10 for my section, as well as classes in other departments.