TEACHING/OUTREACH
Over the course of my time volunteering as an undergrad and as a teaching assistant, I have found immense joy and satisfaction in teaching. I am always on the lookout for ways in which I can incorporate new practices in the courses I teach in the capacity as a TA. Feel free to contact me if you have any suggestions for the same. Following is a brief list of my teaching experience
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As a graduate student, I was fortunate to receive the Distinguished Teaching Fellowship offered by the Department of Biology at UVA to develop my own course on a subject close to my research interests and deliver it as a small group seminar 2- credit course for advanced level undergraduate students . Due to COVID-19, I delivered this entire course synchronously online during the J-term. We as a class delved into the science and published primary literature behind examples of diverse mating behaviors introduced in Dr Tatiana's Sex Advice to all Creation. As part of their final project, students worked in groups to address a novel question regarding the causes and consequences of observed mating patterns. Do check out my blog to view one of their final assignments. Please email or message me, if you would like to chat about pedagogy tools, know more about the teaching fellowship or view my syllabus and list of readings.
As a graduate student, I have assisted in various lab and lecture courses be it Human Anatomy and Physiology, Animal Behavior or Introductory Biology. You can find more about my teaching experience and background here. I share some tips on pedagogy and teaching as a graduate teaching assistant in a book chapter soon to be published in a book by and for graduate students - Teaching Gradually (A project by Cornell University). If you would like to read a pre-print of the chapter, do email me.
Tomorrow's Professor Today - Fellow
Info from website : "Tomorrow’s Professor Today (TPT) is a professional development program for graduate students and postdoctoral fellows. Designed to facilitate the transition from student to academic professional, the program focuses on improving preparedness primarily in teaching at the college level, with additional emphases in professional development and adjustment to a university career. Activities to support this endeavor include participating in a hybrid course design seminar, attending workshops, observing faculty and peers teach, preparing teaching documents, and peer-mentoring fellow participants. The program divides these activities into introductory and advanced tiers."
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Being part of this program has been widely educational and enjoyable for me so far. You can access many such course offerings by the Centre for Teaching Excellence.
Evolution Education
As part of the flagship outreach program of the Cox Lab, Evolution Education, I have worked with High school biology teachers to conduct research on our field site in Florida with brown anoles. I am currently working on a manuscript describing results from a behavioral experiment I conducted with teachers Lucia Ferrante and Aaron Wiley in the summer of 2017 to examine behavioural differences between female back pattern morphs. In the summer of 2018, teacher fellow Bellasanta Ferrare weaved some magic to help me construct an experimental enclosure in Florida to observe male-male and male-female interactions of brown anoles and collect preliminary data to inform my thesis. Interacting with these teacher fellows has always been a pleasure and I hope to get involved in more outreach efforts as part of this program. You can learn more about the program here
Science Outreach and Policy
With increasing bureaucratic threat, growing intolerance and distrust amongst citizens with respect to science, there was a historic call for all scientists to participate in March for Science in the spring of 2017 in Washington DC. As part of a satellite rally conducted in Charlottesville, 2017 I volunteered with my colleagues in the Department of Biology to host a booth on Evolutionary Biology. We conducted a fun game using skittles to explain to kids about how natural selection through predation can act to change the composition of traits in a population. We also designed posters and interacted with visitors to discuss about the importance and application of concepts of evolutionary biology in the modern world. You can read some of the news coverage related to the event here. I also helped organize a similar booth in Feb 2020 during the Annual STEM Middle School Visit to the Biology department at UVA. I have also been an active participant of the seminars held by the Science Policy Initiative Team at UVA and hope to be involved in one of their many projects in the upcoming months.
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I have also been a judge at the Regional (VPRSF) and State (VSSEF) Science fairs in Virginia since 2019. It is a great way to interact and talk about science with young minds. Check out the links to find ways to volunteer for these science fairs.
Society for Promotion of Indian Classical Music And Culture Amongst Youth (SPICMACAY- UVa)
I have worked as an Event and Volunteer Coordinator for the Society for Promotion of Indian Classical Music and Culture Amongst Youth (SPICMACAY) Chapter at University of Virginia, Charlottesville. Started in India in 1979, today SPICMACAY has spread to several chapters across the world with the goal of bringing the heritage and classical and folk forms of creative expression that have developed in different part of India over centuries. Since my time as a graduate student, I have helped organize dance and music concerts every fall and spring at UVA in collaboration with undergraduate, graduate students and members of the community in Charlottesville. I have also been involved in radio promotion and fundraising for these events. For further information, check out our website, and sign up for our monthly newsletter for updates.