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Do you speak English?

October 16, 2017 By Sneha Upadhyaya in gedif17 9 Comments

I am an international student from Nepal and I have been living in the US for about 5 years now. Over the course of these 5 years, I have had several experiences of being stereotyped based on how I look. Recently, as I was working in my office, an IT support person showed up as a response to the help desk ticket that someone from my office had put in. I was the only person in the office when he came and the first thing he asked me was, “Hi, do you speak English?”

I was very shocked. Although I have been a many time victim of racial stereotyping, this one greatly frustrated me. How could someone make an assumption that I couldn’t speak English just by looking at my skin color? Firstly, he well knew that he was at a Graduate Student Office and any graduate student at VT should be able to speak English having met the English proficiency requirements for admission at VT. What furiated me even more was that, when I answered a “YES” to his question, he gave me a surprised look and said “Oh!”

Many other times many people have asked me where I was originally from, how I was able to speak English well despite being a foreigner and how I didn’t have much of an “accent.” Some people don’t even think that its important to ask and make a direct comment such as “You are from India, aren’t you?” I think that some people find great joy in making assumptions and creating stereotypes, or as Shankar Vedantam would say that our “Hidden Brains” would like to do so.

I agree with Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie that people create stereotypes from a single story and it may not always be their fault. I think children from very young age should be taught and told stories about different places, people, and their cultures and that all humans are equal despite some differences, so that they don’t create stereotypes with a single story. Specially, parents and teachers have a great role in this.

I keep thinking of what I could do, as a future faculty, to promote diversity and make the learning environment for students more inclusive. I might not be able to bring in a whole lot of changes but I think even trying to practice what is already on the papers will help foster a welcoming and affirming environment. Here are a few things that I would try to do to promote diversity and inclusion as a faculty:

  • Make sure that I understand the needs and expectations of my students in the classroom.
  • Maintain a respectful and safe environment and speak up or take actions against any misconducts. I would be careful about what I speak and would try to reflect diversity and inclusion in my words and actions.
  • Create an environment where students feel free to share any issues (either in person or anonymously).
  • Bring up conversations and share ideas related to diversity and inclusion with other colleagues in the department.
  •  Serve in committees that work in diversity related issues and try to promote their events.

I would like to hear from you as well. What would you do to create an inclusive learning environment in your classrooms?

 

PS: I saw this on the news recently (many of you might have already seen this) and thought it was interesting: https://nyti.ms/2y3M0fa

 

The kind of teacher I do not want to be

October 2, 2017 By Sneha Upadhyaya in gedif17 14 Comments

Earlier today as I was going through the readings for this week, I kept asking myself, “What kind of teacher do I want to be?” I had a quick flashback of my student life until now and reminded me of some of the great teachers I have had so far. “What did they do that made them so great?” Although there were some common attributes these teachers shared among each other, each of them had their unique styles that motivated you to be actively involved in the learning process. So…..what style of teaching is the best style? Which one of these teachers do I want to be in future? A very difficult question to answer because, as Dr. Fowler writes,” There is not one way to teach or communicate in the classroom, so one size does not fit all.” 

Although I have a vague picture of what I would like to do as a teacher in future, I am still not sure of the kind of teacher I would really like to be. However, I do have a very clear idea of what I do not want to do as a future teacher or in other words, the kind of teacher I do not want to be.

I do not want to be a teacher who,

  • Walks in the classroom and starts writing on the board right-after without even turning around once until the end of class hour.
  • Sits on a chair throughout the class time and reads line by line from text books.
  • Assigns a lot of homework assignments but never gives any feedback.
  • Only talks about what is going to be on the tests and defines a learning boundary.
  • Uses the same “teaching formula” for all their students not realizing that each student has different capacities.
  • Speaks in a low monotonic voice.
  • Directly or indirectly forces their students to memorize equations and charts (or rote learn).
  • Only uses the chalkboard to teach.
  • Never asks for any feedback from the students or in other words, doesn’t listen to the student voices.
  • Does not know how to deliver information concisely and effectively.
  • Evaluates students based on the mere grades they receive on the courses.
  • Does not create a welcoming environment for discussion and sharing of ideas both inside and outside of the classroom.
  • Uses the same syllabus, course materials, homework, and tests for decades.
  • Discourages the use of technology in classrooms.
  • Does not give chances to correct the mistakes.
  • Only talks to the first row of students in class.
  • Does not know the subject matter well and is unprepared.
  • ………………………………
  • ………………
  • ……….
  • …
  • .

(I think I should stop now because the list just keeps getting longer and longer.)

In short, as a future teacher, I will try my best to avoid all of the above listed things and think of what I could do to make it better. I think the key is “engagement” and my goal is to create the kind of environment that helps foster an effective teaching-learning process.

 

 

Sorry but I can’t memorize

September 18, 2017 By Sneha Upadhyaya in gedif17 9 Comments

I have always been very bad at memorizing things, especially equations. However, most of the classes during my undergraduate degree in Civil Engineering required me to memorize numbers and lots of equations. I still remember the day, when I went home feeling completely devastated after doing terribly bad in my Hydraulics exam. I wasn’t sad because I didn’t know how to solve the problems, in fact I knew the solution to each and every problem very well. However, at that moment, I couldn’t remember some of the equations associated with solving those problems and hence, I couldn’t write the final answer in numbers. I knew I wasn’t going to get good grades although I wrote the step by step procedure to solve the problems because the examiners only cared about the final answer. Finally, the results came out and I got a very poor score which was expected.

This is probably the story for many people like me who have a hard time memorizing equations and thus have failed to get good grades in exams. Our education systems are built in such a way where students are graded and ranked based on their ability to “memorize” things. An example of this is the multiple-choice exams where the students are solely graded based on the number of correct answer choices in the Scranton sheets. This in no way appreciates any of the efforts that the students put on trying to solve the problem. Even if you did everything correctly but messed up while pressing some numbers on the calculator in the final step, you will probably be put in the same category as someone who had absolutely no clue about how to solve the problem.

https://heartoftheclassroom.files.wordpress.com/2014/11/mind-full-or-mindful.png

I think there are issues with both the examining and the grading system which in many ways forces students to “rote learn” and the distinction between a good and a poor student is made based on their grades. There has to be definitely a better methodology for teaching and grading where mindful learning is encouraged and the efforts of the students in solving the problem is appreciated.

 

Are we ready to embrace the change?

September 10, 2017 By Sneha Upadhyaya in gedif17 4 Comments

All of the reads for this week were pretty interesting and I greatly enjoyed reading each of them. One thing that all of these readings had in common was how technology could affect the teaching-learning process. There were some pretty good examples of how technology could be utilized in pedagogical practices, in fact, technology seems inevitable in today’s world. On one hand, I am impressed and amazed to see how technology and digital learning offers immense potential to bring great changes to the teaching-learning process, while on the other hand, I ask myself, “Are we ready to embrace the change?”

http://georgeberlin.indiemade.com/gallery/image/embrace-change

We constantly hear and talk about all these wonders that technology could bring in education. However, how often do we actually bring technology to our classrooms? Some of us still have so much love for overhead projectors that we really aren’t ready to even adopt PowerPoint or other multimedia presentation tools in our classrooms. We would rather have our students turn in their homework assignments on paper than submit them online. We don’t want our students to bring their digital devices in classrooms and would rather like them take notes on their notebook using a pen/pencil because we think our students get distracted from the lectures.

The truth of the matter is that we do like to see the change but we ourselves aren’t ready yet to take the initiative to bring the change. In other words, we are too lazy to put additional efforts to change something that’s already out there-packaged and ready for us to use. Think about how often do professors want to change their style of teaching or even the syllabus or lecture notes when they have so much other things to worry about? However, this doesn’t mean that every teacher is the same but there are only a few who really put in efforts and show dynamism in pedagogical practices.

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/72690981461698794

Every new idea or concept can have both positive and negative sides. If we only think about the negative aspects, we can never move forward. We really need to build some courage to face the challenges and be ready to embrace the changes. As the old saying goes,

“Old ways won’t open new doors.”

 

 

 

Networked learning: The sky’s the limit

September 3, 2017 By Sneha Upadhyaya in gedif17 4 Comments

With the development of technology and global networking, the teaching-learning process is no longer limited to text books and traditional blackboard classroom lectures. Learning and knowledge sharing in the modern world has evolved into higher dimensions-only the sky is the limit! Especially, higher education has greatly benefited from networked learning. Some examples include Massive Online Open Courses (MOOC), webinars, and web conferences, etc. Distance, age and time can no longer be considered barriers for people who have a desire for higher education.

Network learning can provide a greater platform and larger audience for those involved in scholarly pursuits. Through the means of social media and other web tools (to name a few: twitter, blogs, online chat forums, etc.) academics can establish a public identity and establish connections with peers and greater public. Through discussions and sharing of ideas, network learning can take the learning process to a whole new level.

Shown below is is a great illustration of the different facets of network learning in the 21st century by Dr. Alec Couros.

http://www.lasalle.edu/wp_res/uploads/open-network-learning-091112.pdf

 

 

GEDIF17 Test

August 31, 2017 By Sneha Upadhyaya in gedif17 No Comments

GRE for job applications, seriously??

May 1, 2017 By Sneha Upadhyaya in pfps17 5 Comments

As I was on a literature search for my scholarly paper which is about GRE requirements for graduate school applications, I found an article published in The Chronicle of Higher Education by Dan Berrett, the title of which said, “My GRE Score Says I’m Smart. Hire Me.“

Here is the link to the article:

http://www.chronicle.com/article/My-GRE-Score-Says-Im-Smart/136733/?cid=wb

Initially I thought that the content was probably about using GRE scores for hiring Graduate Research/Teaching Assistants at universities, however I was surprised when I read the entire article. The reason being that the article was actually about companies using GRE scores to hire individuals. I had no clue until now that such thing as providing your GRE scores for job applications existed in real world, but it did. Moreover, at first I thought maybe that wasn’t something legal and was most likely of one of the many cases of misuse of GRE scores, but I was wrong. ETS can officially provide GRE scores to the companies upon the approval of the test taker and many applicants have been providing their GRE scores to companies to increase their chances of getting hired.

I was already against using GRE scores for selecting graduate students and now that I found that companies look at GRE scores to sort out applicants, I am really upset. Many studies have already shown that GRE scores are only able to somewhat predict the first year graduate GPA but may not be valid predictors  of other factors such as research abilities, leadership, professionalism etc. which are equally important for success of a graduate student. So, the question arises, how would GRE predict how successful a person will be in his/her workplace?

I think ETS should think more about this and not allow the use of GRE scores by companies to hire individuals. GRE scores can in no means be a valid measure of an individual’s capacity to succeed and excel at their works.

 

Online education at Virginia Tech

April 23, 2017 By Sneha Upadhyaya in pfps17 1 Comment

Recently, I was interested to know where Virginia Tech ranks in terms of online education and distance learning. So I googled VT ranking for online degrees and the first thing that popped up is the US News ranking for best online programs. VT is actually ranked second in Best Online Graduate Computer Information Technology Programs and thirteenth in Best Online Graduate Engineering Programs. The ranking was based on different categories such as student engagement, faculty credentials and training, peer reputation, student services and technology, and admissions selectivity. Each of these categories have different weights.

This made me curious about what other departments at Virginia Tech offered online degrees.

I found the following website which had all the information for Virginia Tech Online Degrees and Certificates.

http://www.vto.vt.edu/?.

Virginia Tech offers online Master’s Degree Programs in 14 disciplines (which includes 7 from College of Engineering out of which three are entirely online degrees:Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering, Master’s of Information Technology, and Master of Science in Ocean Engineering ) and Online Graduate Certificates in 10 disciplines. Some of these are offered online whereas some are offered as interactive videoconferencing. The tuition in general for the online graduate program is 767$ per hour for Virginia residents and  1,495$ per hour for non-Virginia residents. However, there are some special rates for some of the programs.

I think online education and distance learning is one of the greatest advancements of higher education and provides flexibility to earn a degree from any location and at their own time of convenience. This could be a very good opportunity for working people, parents with little kids, people with disabilities to get educational degrees which would not have been possible otherwise.

 

PhD workspace environment

April 22, 2017 By Sneha Upadhyaya in pfps17 No Comments

Let’s admit it. As graduate students we spend more time at our offices (or labs) than anywhere else. Your office is probably going to be your second home and the fellow graduate students are going to be your extended family for at least the number of years you spend in your PhD. Thus, it is very important that you have a pleasant workspace environment and you enjoy your time when at work.

My workspace is located at the basement, has two windows with bars and no views (well, I get to see green walls). The PhD office is a tiny room and has 6 desk spaces, book shelves, cabinets, couple printers, one little refrigerator and a microwave. You do not get fresh air and the heating and cooling system doesn’t work you need them. You do not get to see the daylight and you don’t have the slightest clue of what’s happening outside (This might be actually a good thing because you are less distracted). However, I do have very good colleagues around me and I really enjoy my time with them.

I might sound like I am complaining and what I have for a workspace could probably be far better than what some of you do. I am interested to know, what do your workspaces look like? Do you get to enjoy the daylight or fresh air or good views?

 

 

What can a dependent spouse of an international student do in the US?

April 22, 2017 By Sneha Upadhyaya in pfps17 No Comments

A thought crossed my mind when Dr. DePauw mentioned about partner accommodation and dual-career for people pursuing academic careers last Monday: Can there be some similar accommodations for the dependent spouses of international graduate students as well?

I have a friend who is an international PhD student and when she came to the US for her studies, her husband accompanied her as an F-2 dependent. For those of you who may not know, F-2 dependent visa is a non-immigrant visa which allows an international F-1 student to bring their spouse and child to the US. However, the dependents are not allowed to take up paid employment in the US. Now, my friend’s husband who already has a Master’s degree from a different country can not do anything besides staying at home or pursuing some hobbies/interests. The question is, how long can someone who has a higher level academic degree not do anything related to their education but be taking up hobbies? May be 6 months or a year max, but think about the 5 years of time before her wife will have graduated with her PhD degree. He could probably apply to be a student once again and change his visa status to F-1 as well, but what are the chances of him getting accepted and funded at the same University?

My friend is happy that she has her husband by her side who can provide her with all the care and emotional support during her tough life as a PhD student but she is also worried that he will have to pause his career for at least 5 years. Had there been any accommodations for her husband (some kind of on campus employment or opportunities for career/professional development ), he could also be productive and make the best use of his time until his wife graduates.

1 2

Do you speak English?

The kind of teacher I do not want to be

Sorry but I can’t memorize

Are we ready to embrace the change?

Networked learning: The sky’s the limit

GEDIF17 Test

GRE for job applications, seriously??

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