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Teaching and Research Mentorship

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The most important learning outcome for college students is to acquire the skills and confidence to answer their own questions. My approach to teaching is to guide students through this process so they can lead their own inquiries independently in the future. Most students enter college with the idea that every question as a direct solution, and the professor is a dispenser of answers. The core of my teaching philosophy is to use probing questions to guide student thought process, and to design activities that encourage students to take initiative in their own learning. Here's an example of a teaching project I led during Fall 2015: Hands-On Learning on the Mountain. I've also given teaching workshops on best practices for teaching lab courses: Active Learning in the Laboratory. 

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Courses Taught:

At Penn State Altoona:

BIOL 110 Biology: Basic Concepts and Biodiversity Lecture & Lab 

BIOL 220W Biology: Populations and Communities Lecture & Lab

BIOL 446 Physiological Ecology Lecture

BIOL 463 General Ecology Lecture

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At Cedar Crest College:

BIO 112 Concepts in Human Biology Lecture & Lab (for non-science majors)

BIO 123 Foundations in Biology Lecture & Recitation

BIO 117 Human Anatomy and Physiology I Lecture & Lab

BIO 118 Human Anatomy and Physiology II Lecture & Lab

BIO 239 Animal Ecology and Development Lab

BIO 260 Comparative Animal Physiology Lecture & Lab 

BIO 143/243/353 Independent Student Research

 

At Simon Fraser University:

BISC 102 General Biology Lab

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Even better than active learning in the classroom is hands on research experience.  I believe mentorship, particularly in a scientific research setting, is mutually beneficial, simultaneously collecting scientific data and educating undergrads through practical experience. Check out the student research projects from the lab below!

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Summer Field Work

Because our study species breed once a year (spring/summer), our field work takes place during the summer break. This may not be convenient for all students' schedules, but when you study wildlife you are on nature's clock! Interested Penn State students can apply for funding to be paid for their summer research through the Erickson Discovery Grant and the Division of Mathematics and Natural Sciences Summer Undergraduate Research Grants. Students are also encouraged to apply for extramural funding: Holden Grant, Bergstrom Research Award, Jed Burtt Undergraduate Mentoring. Please discuss summer research with me (aec5780[AT]psu.edu) before applying so I can best support your goals. There may be existing lab funds available if grants are unsuccessful.

BIOL 294/494: Research Courses

BIOL 294 and 494 students complete an independent research project (1-3 credits) which involves choosing their own research topic (within the scope of the lab), collecting data, conducting their own data analyses in R, and presenting a poster or talk on their findings at the Altoona Undergraduate Research and Creative Activities Fair, held in the spring annually. Credits are based on student time commitment: 3 hours/week per credit (2 credits = 6 hours/week), this includes time spent at weekly meetings, collecting and entering data, reading related literature, coding in R, etc.

Completed Student Research Projects

*Student presented their work at a conference

**Student shared authorship on manuscript publication

At Penn State Altoona:

  • Abandonment during incubation is unpredictable in bluebirds: Madleen Anes

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At Cedar Crest College:

  • Variation in paternal care and its possible consequences on offspring development in a farmland raptor: Jaime Matson*

  • Differences in biparental behavior in Falco sparverius depending on sex: Taylor Robbins*

  • Dietary habits of the spotted lanternfly Lycorma delicatula: Miranda Fetchen*

  • Relationships among morphological and physiological parameters in developing American kestrel chicks: Mercy Melo*

  • Invasive Spotted Lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) and its potential hosts: Leslie Abreu*

  • Diet composition and sex ratio of American kestrel nests: Courtney Zimmerman*

  • Diet of American kestrels and its application as an alternative pest control system: Mercy Melo*

  • Interannual variation in diet composition of American kestrel (Falco sparverius) chicks: Leslie Abreu*

  • Diet variation in American kestrels (Falco sparverius) and its relation to the number of chicks fledged: Fernanda Culichia* and Alexis Zigarelli*

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At Simon Fraser University:

  • "The effect of body mass and brood size on flight performance and flight strategy in fledging European starlings, Sturnus vulgaris" Kate Gibson**

  • "Sources of variation in reticulocytes and other hematological parameters during fledging in birds" Margot Webster

  • "Reticulocyte count as a condition indicator in European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris)" Alex Gene*

  • "The study of sex-specific flight performance correlation with both hemoglobin and hematocrit in the European starling (Sturnus vulgaris) over a three year period." Muneeb Arshid

  • "How developmentally mature are chicks at fledging? Variation in hematology during a critical life-history transition" James Hou*, **

  • "Variation in lipid content of Tipula paludosa larvae and breeding phenology of European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris)" Hussein Elhagehassan

  • "The relationship between paternal care and offspring survival in European starlings" Reo Zukoshi

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