Statement of Teaching Philosophy                                         Scott P. Segal

          One of the most exciting experiences I have in teaching are when my students learn new ways of viewing the world, and question prior assertions.  Thus, I most enjoy in class when we have active discourse and the students are questioning the validity of what I say during the lecture or discussion.

As an undergraduate at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, I enrolled in the Honors Biocore curriculum.  Although this is a large university, there was a limit to the number of students allowed in Biocore curriculum, which gave us more access to the faculty.  The overall goal of this curriculum was to teach Biology by putting the student in the role of a scientist, and as we learned, we also had the opportunity to question what we know about Biology.  I enjoyed this method of teaching because it promoted earned knowledge and it deepened critical thinking.  I think this led to further curiosity, questioning of previously held assertions, and additionally promoted active discourse between students and faculty.  As an instructor, I strive to incorporate this philosophy into the classroom by assigning readings from several sources, including primary literature as well as textual reading, and by designing both discussion, and written exercises that include application of the scientific method, which I think is the backbone of critical thinking and communication is science.

I am extremely energized about the learning process both for the students as well as for me, the instructor.  In my teaching experience, it is not just the student who learns from the teacher, but I get to learn from the students as well. For instance, I really enjoy when the students ask intelligent questions, and the students discuss their approaches to solve a biological problem, thus driving critical thinking in the class between fellow students as well as me, as instructor.  I enjoy learning about the students, about who they are and how they learn, because I will then incorporate that into my teaching for future courses.  I will use this information to enrich the learning experience for future students.  Furthermore, I find teaching allows me to engage my own curiosity.  I love the opportunity to be able to learn new aspects of Biology, especially as new information enters the literature or information that is outside my knowledge base, and then impart that knowledge onto my students.  I believe it is important as a Biology instructor to have this curiosity, as the breadth of information is much larger than one individual can know.
 
I strive to bring excitement, excellence and curiosity in the classroom, with my teaching style.  In my classroom, I prefer a collaborative learning atmosphere between instructor and student.  In order to accomplish this, I believe communication is important.  I like to articulate the goals for the course from the beginning.  I feel this allows me to build trust in the classroom, which I think is important to the learning process.  In my classroom, I encourage active discourse not only between instructor and student, but between students as well.  I enjoy asking questions in class, and planning group assignments in which the students report their answers in class.  I believe this gives the students a forum to practice communicating their answers and ideas about biological problems.  Also, in asking students questions, even in the context of a lecture, or having them report on their group work, I learn who the students are as people, and I get updated information about the ability level of the class, and what materials need to be more closely covered.  Furthermore, I use group work inside of class and encourage it outside of class, to allow the students to become more confident, and comfortable with the material, and gain respect for their fellow student, such that they will actively participate in class.  Lastly, I believe in being flexible in using different teaching strategies in order to facilitate learning because, in my experience, each group of students I taught has been diverse, both in knowledge and culture, and thus individual students, as well as each group of students I taught has approached learning differently.  As examples of teaching strategies, I use a combination of lecture, question and answer, surprise quizzes, as well as assigning students to bring questions to class, which will be handed in, and potentially chosen for discussion to foster the learning process.  I am always open to new strategies to aid in the learning process. 

My excitement with learning and education extends further than the classroom.  At Winona State University I am engaging in interdisciplinary research between Science and Education, as part of the New Faculty Community of Practice and the Gender Group.  As part of the New Faculty Community of Practice, I am beginning a project dealing with maximizing learning and critical thinking in classroom laboratories by studying the interface of conceptual and experiential learning.  I believe this will increase critical thinking, and lead to increased development of both future laboratory scientists and medical professionals.