Teaching Experience

At the University of Illinois I teach both introductory and 200-level courses. I also mentor undergraduate researchers. The courses I have taught are listed below with brief descriptions and links to sample syllabi. The description of PSYC 105 (below) also explains my involvement in the restructuring and redevelopment of that course. At the bottom of the page, I've included several courses I am interested in and able to teach. Please click here to see my student evaluations. Or, read about my teaching philosophy here.

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PSYC 105 - Psychology Introduction

Spring '15, Fall '15, Spring '16, Fall '16, Spring '17, Fall '17, Fall, '18
PSYC 105 is an introductory Psychology course offered to students from the University of Illinois' Access and Achievement Program (AAP). AAP supports the success and retention of minority students at UIUC by providing them with small class sizes, hand-picked teachers, and academic guidance. I was asked to teach this class by my supervisor for PSYC 100 after my first semester of teaching. 
During the Spring 2015 semester, I piloted a new 3-day format for this course. Students have two days of typical lecture-style class, and a third hands-on 'lab' day. I designed the 13 new lesson plans needed for these lab days. They are filled with activities to enhance my student's understanding and enjoyment of the material. For example, the lab covering learning has students classically condition themselves, the biological psychology lab has students build neurons out of pipe cleaners, then set up a neural network with their creations, and during the developmental psychology lab they act out different parenting styles for the class.

Spring 2016 Syllabus

PSYC 100 - Introduction to Psychology

Fall 2014 (Two Sections)
PSYC 100 is the general introductory course at the University of Illinois. I was the primary instructor for two sections.  PSYC 100 is primarily a lecture-based course. Students also regularly participate in team exercise days in which they are asked to work in small groups to answer questions about the material and to relate it to real world situations. 

​Fall 2014 Syllabus (standard for all Psyc 100 sections)

PSYC 230 - Perception and Sensation

Summer '14, Summer '15, Summer '16, Summer '17
PSYC 230 serves as an in-depth look at the human  visual, auditory, olfactory, gustatory, vestibular, and somatosensory systems. As instructor, I include a variety of demonstrations of sensory phenomena throughout the term. Students in my class will (among other things) sort candies by color under a monochromatic light (it's hard!), run a two-point threshold experiment on themselves, test the tight link between their olfactory and gustatory systems, and experience the power of inter-aural time and level differences. Because this course is taught in the summer, I have had the opportunity to teach a variety of learners, including some continuing education students. 

​Summer 2015 Syllabus

Undergraduate Research Mentorship

Throughout my graduate and postdoctoral career I have mentored many undergraduate students. Undergraduates are an integral part of my research program. They help me collect data and in return, I try to provide them with an understanding of the process of research, an understanding of the literature guiding their work, and a unique skill set.
I also have had the opportunity to mentor senior students as they work on their own research projects. I guide students through the process of reviewing the literature, finding an appropriate research question, designing and programming an experiment, collecting and analyzing data, and reporting their results. 

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Areas of Competence

Below are courses I am interested in and am qualified to teach. 

Introductory Psychology
Introductory Statistics
Research Methods
Sensation and Perception
Cognitive Psychology
Learning and Memory
Biological Psychology
Cognitive Neuroscience