I am passionate about teaching and student learning, reflected by my current role as the Associate Dean – Undergraduate Studies for the Faculty of Environment at U. Waterloo. In this role, I am responsible for all matters related to our 2,300 undergraduate students. Previously, I served as Associate Chair of Undergraduate Studies in ERS.
I have taught one of our core PhD seminars (ERS702) a few times, but I have mostly taught at the undergraduate level. I develop courses that nurture inter- and transdisciplinary thinking and critical engagement — both verbal and written — with the “environment.” I have taught both large “core” courses with up to 250 students, as well as much smaller in-class seminars and field-based courses (see CV for complete list of past teaching assignments), though either way I aim to nurture experiential, reflective, and transformative learning experiences. I am not afraid to experiment with unconventional teaching techniques: in one of my courses, for example, students have learned how to juggle to experientially ground several metaphors related to environmental thought (see a paper on this experience here). In another course, a small group of students and I spend seven days living in the outdoors together to learn about local natural history.
Click here to read a write-up about my teaching style by the University of Waterloo’s Centre for Teaching Excellence.
Click here to learn about the Science and Technology in Society teaching group at the University of Waterloo.
My regular course from 2018-2019 will include the following:
Spring Term:
1. Field Ecology (ENVS200)
This is a large introductory ecology course, with associated lab and field activities. I developed the current version of the course, which has now been offered to over 2000 students across the three terms each year, and currently teach it in Spring Term.
2. Ontario Natural History: Species and Patterns (ERS283)
I have held this eight-day block field course in mid-June annually for the past decade at the Bruce Peninsula Bird Observatory at the north-east tip of the Bruce Peninsula. This is a ‘blended’ course that was developed through the Teaching Excellence Academy offered by the University of Waterloo’s Centre for Teaching Excellence. It includes online components leading up to the portion in the field. In the field, we do group exercises to learn local natural history, focusing on birds, insects, and plants, and students also do an independent research project. Past students have loved it, so if you’re a student, I hope you will consider joining us in the future.
