Six faculty members in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS) at Iowa State University have been named Master Teachers for 2008-09.
The LAS Master Teachers named are Jim Colbert, associate professor of ecology, evolution and organismal biology; Jane Cox, professor of music and director of ISU Theatre; Chad Gasta, associate professor of Spanish in the Department of World Languages and Cultures; Nicola Pohl, associate professor of chemistry; Carol Vleck, professor of ecology, evolution and organismal biology; and David Vogel, associate professor of psychology.
This is the tenth year of the LAS Master Teacher program, which recognizes teachers who have a reputation for using unique methods to enhance student learning. This year's award recognizes individuals with expertise in experiential learning or off-campus learning opportunities.
Previous LAS Master Teacher classes have focused on large lecture classrooms, technology use in the classroom, undergraduate research, multicultural teaching activities and graduate instruction.
The six LAS Master Teachers will plan teaching methods seminars and in-class demonstrations throughout the academic year.
The honorees include:
Jim Colbert, associate professor of ecology, evolution and organismal biology. Colbert serves as the program coordinator for Iowa State's undergraduate biology program. In addition to overseeing curricular innovations and development, he teaches both large-enrollment introductory and smaller specialty courses. He is exceptionally active outside of the classroom, with efforts to engage students more broadly in biological experiences. The founder of the Skunk River Navy, Colbert annually leads hundreds of students several weekends of the fall cleaning up local streams, while instructing students about the local biodiversity of Iowa waterways. Every year he leads course into the wilds with small groups of students. His course, Biodiversity of the Boreal Forest, fills instantly every year and takes place on canoes in the Boundary Waters of northern Minnesota into Canada. This is the second time Colbert has been named a LAS Master Teacher. He was in the inaugural class, which was recognized for their large lecture classroom instruction.
Jane Cox, professor of music and director of ISU Theatre. One colleague noted that Cox "is the perfect person for this award - experiential learning is what she provides to her students on a daily basis." Each year, Cox two ISU Theatre productions, which includes dozens of students, many of them non-majors. Cox coordinates these volunteers and provides them with a direct insight into the creation of a full theatre production through rehearsals, pre-production, technical production and the performance of the shows. Through the Introduction to the Performing Arts course, she requires students to attend several theatre, music, film and dance productions throughout the semester.
Chad Gasta, associate professor of Spanish in the Department of World Languages and Cultures. During his brief time at Iowa State, Gasta has undertaken significant course and curricular development in the university's Spanish program, relocating and completely restructuring the department's two separate language and culture study-abroad programs in Spain. He serves as director of the programs in Aliante (summer) and Caceres (semester) in Spain, both of which offer opportunity for student internships. Gasta also serves as co-director and primary Spanish-program liaison for the Languages and Cultures for the Professions (LCP) Program in the department, which has transformed student learning opportunities in foreign languages by leading curricular reform across the department.
Nicola Pohl, associate professor of chemistry. While at Iowa State, Pohl's intensive and successful efforts have revamped the undergraduate chemistry laboratories. She has redesigned the undergraduate organic laboratory curriculum for discovery-based learning and introduced state-of-the-art concepts and techniques. The chemistry professor has also developed examples from fields intersecting with chemistry to incorporate more real-world examples of chemical problem-solving into the undergraduate organic chemistry lecture course. Pohl has brought societal concerns into the curriculum, drawing underrepresented groups into science.
Carol Vleck, professor of ecology, evolution and organismal biology. Vleck has made outstanding contributions in teaching from the undergraduate to the postdoctoral level She is a strong proponent of experimental learning and believes lab/field sciences like environmental physiology are best learned through research experience. Based on her research on penguins, she led field trips to Antarctica in 1999 and 2004. According to a former student, Vleck "truly loves her job; and I've never encountered a teacher who puts more effort into developing students both in and out of the classroom."
David Vogel, associate professor of psychology. Vogel views learning outside of the classroom as a key component to students' overall development, a place to motivate students to learn through engagement in discussions, to apply their knowledge and to receive feedback to enhance their understanding. He sees interactions with students outside the classroom as a place to encourage students to become critical readers, thinkers and writers – promoting their intellectual engagement with research while having them learn about important issues present in the field. To this end, he frequently meets with classes and students to discuss psychology and graduate school and he has provided over 70 undergraduates with opportunities to develop their experiences and skills through collaborating on research.
Jim Colbert
Jane Cox
Chad Gasta
Nicola Pohl
Carol Vleck
David Vogel
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