Philosophy of Teaching

John Wenzel
Entomology
Academy of Teaching Member
The Ohio State University

Teaching biology can be a very easy thing to do. All of us experience the science of life every day. An appealing way to attract students to complex topics is by reference to current events and popular news articles. Headlines regarding a new vaccine, the search for life on Mars, or a new dinosaur fossil can all make various biological issues become part of the vibrant events of a student's own daily life rather than the dry material of assigned reading. Seemingly abstract principles become more real by recounting pertinent personal experiences. A bad cold is as much a memorable demonstration of principles of epidemiology and viral evolution as it is a reason to skip lecture. Incorporating stage props makes classes more interactive. Who is not curious about a skull brandished from the podium, or a fossil passed through the audience? The major difficulty in teaching biology comes from the necessity of striking a balance between the connections to popular culture and the great volume of technical knowledge required to succeed in the science itself.

Of course, it is too much to expect that all, or even a majority of students will absorb the most difficult material adequately through reading and lecture alone. This is what office hours are for. Encouraging voluntary attendance at office hours, and making special arrangements for those whose responsibilities conflict with scheduled office hours, is the best way to ensure that students who feel somehow unprepared get the direction they need to proceed confidently. A teacher should be frank about what is required, and what is not likely to be examined later, because it shows fairmindedness. Students should be encouraged to discuss poor exam grades in office hours because even though there is only one way to get a very good grade, there are many ways to perform poorly, and everyone deserves a chance to show that he can do better. Make-ups need not be another formal exam. Often an informal conversation can show that a student knows more than he demonstrated at a certain hour on a certain day. This is a good time to learn students names and to show sincere interest in each individual. It is particularly important in large classes that students feel the instructor cares about them. It is human nature to try to please those we admire, and students who feel that a teacher is fair, approachable, and sincere will usually make a more determined effort to excel in their assignments. Casual visits to the laboratory periods are another good opportunity for contact outside formal lecture, time to show students that professors too are students of biology.

In any science, certain facts must be learned, but it is not knowledge of the facts alone that make a scientific mind. Like an Olympic diving competition, study should include an opportunity for students to perform certain compulsory skills and also to demonstrate their own creativity. My examinations cover the material everyone is expected to know (as a diver knows the jackknife, the backflip), and my open-book, take-home problems allow students to dream and stretch (a one-and-a-half reverse with a full twist). Unlike the formal exams, problem sets have no "correct" answers, rather it is the demonstration of thinking itself that is rewarded. This approach allows controversial topics to be examined without a test of faith. In my Evolution class, no one is required to believe in evolution. Questions are posed in a non-confrontational way ("Explain how, according to Dr. Wenzel, birds evolved from dinosaurs..."). A student who uses the problem set to argue the opposite of what I think will be awarded full points if the argument is well-constructed and shows a knowledge of the basic issues. Because so much of science is based upon skeptical inquiry, it would be unscientific to examine students without allowing them to be skeptical of prevailing theory itself.

One of the most rewarding aspects of teaching is the opportunity to learn from the students. It is most unfortunate if an instructor overlooks the fact that among the hundreds of faces he sees every day is a world of knowledge and experience totaling far more than his own. My students are not only more varied, but also more recently trained than I am, and I learn from them through their questions, observations, and challenges, just as they learn from me through my lectures and assignments. In the best of all possible Universities, the faculty should grow as fast as the students do. I hope that by my contact with sharp, young minds, my own mind and those I teach will be kept forever young.

The student body at a big state school is different from that at a small, private college. With the challenge of teaching many students of varied backgrounds and abilities comes one of the most gratifying opportunities. More than anything else, I enjoy seeing the non-traditional students (say, the 28 year old construction worker, the single mother, the new immigrant) strive to better their lives, and achieve their goal of using education to open new doors for their future. When one of my former students tells me about his or her recent success in getting a new job or admission to professional school, I feel fulfilled, and especially so if I know that this student realized dreams that might have been beyond reach if not for the mission of institutions like OSU.

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