Congrats to Cassie Whitt who has won the College of Arts & Sciences’ College-level award and the University of Alabama overall award for Outstanding Teaching as a Doctoral Student! Cassie is an advisee of Dr. Alexa Tullett and a sample of her winning teaching summary is below.
“My teaching is principally guided by a concept known as anagnorisis. It is a Greek term that means “a change from ignorance to knowledge.” In many ways, my goals as both a scientist and an educator align with anagnorisis. We are seeking truth about the social world in which we live, and a central objective in pursuing that truth is to facilitate the transformative process of shifting from ignorance – about ourselves and other people – to critical understanding. In line with this philosophy, I am passionate about, and strongly committed to, teaching and mentoring. As a graduate student, I have had the fortune of teaching eight classes as instructor of record, and I have used these opportunities to develop various pedagogical techniques including flipped classrooms, jigsaw classrooms, and ungrading. Additionally, in 2021, I was selected to be a Graduate Teaching Fellow at the University of Alabama, which has involved creating and running professional development workshops related to pedagogy.”