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Teaching
Philosophy |
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Shannon Tauro |
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Philosophy: People learn best by doing, not by listening or reading. NOTE: The advice my
undergraduate faculty mentor gave me in regards to this changed me from a
B-/C+ student to an A/A+ student. No kidding…. |
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Consequences: · Class sessions will be
conducted with the assumption that you have read the material to be covered
for the day. Class will be used to clarify, apply, and expand upon the
readings. · Hands-on lab assignments
(where applicable) are a major focus of my courses. Because of their importance, they will
account for a large part of your grade. · There will be short in-class
assignments, as well as weekly written assignments. This is to ensure that
you can apply the ideas presented in class to be sure that you understand
them before additional material is presented. · Class time will not be used
purely for lecturing. To ensure that
students stay engaged, they will be called upon to participate, and
participate in group activities. |
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Philosophy: People should use their brain for thinking. |
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Consequences: · Memorization is not a good
use of the brain: While in some cases it is necessary to memorize jargon in
order to communicate and reason about complex ideas, memorization will be
kept to a minimum. · Ideally, All tests would be
open-book, open-note. However, 200 students with their textbooks and course
notes at tiny desks is a mess in the making. As a result, you will be allowed
a sheet of notes for your exam. |
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Philosophy: Students and teachers work in partnership. |
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Consequences: · Students should never be
penalized for admitting ignorance. By letting the teacher know that you don’t
understand something, you help her, yourself, and the other students. Asking questions counts as positive class
participation just as much as answering questions does. · Because later material
builds on earlier material, students are encouraged to clear up confusions as
soon as possible. For this reason, I
encourage students to send me email (stauro@uci.edu), call or visit my office
(x4955, ICS 430-F) to ask me questions. · Students have the right to
know the reason behind any policy, assignment, or curriculum choice. I have found that knowing these reasons
improves student motivation and sometimes leads to the student’s suggesting a
better alternative. · Students are encouraged to
provide feedback on the teaching throughout the course, either directly or
through an intermediary, such as another student, a teaching assistant,
another professor, or anonymous communication. |
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Philosophy: Interaction with others is an important part of
learning, and what you will be doing regularly on the job. |
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Consequences: · Students are encouraged to consult
another person on homework and lab assignments. Each person should turn in her/his own
write-up in which s/he acknowledges her/his partner. Note: This does not mean
exchanging solutions to problems. Each person should have attempted the
problem individually, and then consult their partner to clear up any
misunderstandings. · Assignments turned in on
time will be graded and returned promptly. |
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Philosophy: Policies should be clear and explicit. |
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Consequences: · Grading policy: Each course shall attempt to adhere to the
following structure for course grades: Labs/Assignments will have the highest
weight, followed by Exams, and class participation/attendance will count for
at least 10% of your grade. · Lateness policy: Late assignments create a logistical nightmare
in large classes (especially with the limited number of staff). However, I
understand that every person has circumstances beyond their control. In an
effort to strike a balance between these two opposing factors, you shall be
allowed to miss one assignment/lab without penalty. To implement this, we
shall drop the lowest score of any assignment/lab upon assigning final
grades. |
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Adapted from Ellen Spertus,
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