Teaching

The three main tenets of my teaching philosophy are experimental and immersive learning, accessibility of course materials, and transportability of course content beyond the classroom. In experimental and immersive learning I am constantly reworking materials that will frame the issues of the course in a new way—one that students can take active roles in working through. I have created assignments that get students into archives for research, frame hard-to-grasp theoretical issues as mystery games, and collection projects that trace the historical development of contemporary social issues. I strive to make my classes accessible not only in terms of meeting students where they are in their intellectual training but also in terms of bringing a critical eye to my teaching, making sure it is accessible to students with disabilities with an understanding that a critical disabilities informed pedagogy makes the course more accessible for all students, non-disabled and disabled students alike. Lastly, I believe that no matter the course subject, the knowledge created in that class should be constructed in a way that the student is able to continue using after they finish the class.

My teaching philosophy is rooted in the understanding that learning is not always a comfortable process, but that good teachers help students put that uncomfortableness to good use. In thoughtful and intentional learning environments, teaching is a transformative process for both the professor and the student.

During my time at Indiana University, I have taught six different undergraduate courses for credit and six different non-credit courses all totaling over 900 students. I strive to instill in my students a passion for learning, whether it is my class subject or not, that will help them become lifelong learners.

Instructor of Record

I designed and taught an experimental topics course on contemporary conspiracy theories. In this class I covered the historical roots of conspiracy thinking, drawing on research from my home disciplines as well as from history, political science, and psychology. The class was completely online due to this class taking place near the beginning of COVID-19. I made use of video lectures, virtual office hours, and class message boards to try and account for some of the difficulties in asynchronous teaching. Students in this class designed research projects to examine the conspiracy theories in their lives, drawing on conspiracy theories they were told by friends, classmates, and family members as well as ones they found on their social media platforms. One of the main learning outcomes built into this class was helping students connect course content to their lives outside of my classroom as well as to help them cultivate critical tools to interrogate conspiracy theories and conspiracy thinking when they encounter it in the world.

“He really cares about the topic and that the students understand its roots, not just putting things down on paper and moving on.”

Current Conspiracy Theories student evaluation, Fall 2020.

Assistant Instructor (AI)

During my graduate education at Indiana University, Bloomington I have been able to teach a number of undergraduate introductory courses in the Department of Folklore and Ethnomusicology. These include F101, Introduction to Folklore; F121, World Arts and Cultures; F131, Folklore in the United States; F252, Urban Legends; and F256, The Supernatural and Folklore.

My role in these courses was as an Associate Instructor. In this capacity, I attended the regular large lecture (ranging from 150-225 students) twice a week as well as conducted my own classes once a week for three sections consisting of 25 students each. I have also given my own lectures prepared for the class as a whole once a semester. Other duties for these courses ranged from preparing and administering my own quizzes to my sections, grading all course material, holding weekly office hours, and crafting my own section syllabus, the policies of which were in coordination with the instructor of record’s policies as well as University policies. My weekly discussion section classes elaborated on required reading and lecture material as well as introduced material that helped clarify other conversations taking place in the course as a whole.

For my work on these courses, I was awarded the 2018 Henry Glassie Excellence in Teaching Award from the Department of Folklore and Ethnomusicology faculty.

“I like how easy he is to reach and communicate with. By far one of the best [instructors] I have had when it came to understanding needs from students and answering any questions.”

Folklore 101 student evaluation, Fall 2020

Lifelong-Learning Instructor

During my graduate career, I was also fortunate enough to work with Indiana University’s Lifelong Learning program in order to create five unique courses of my own design: The Unquiet Dead: Folklore, the Supernatural, and Death; Folklore and Disaster; Vampires in Folklore and Culture: Social Aspects of the Monstrous; The Art of Conflict in Northern Ireland; and Haunted Indiana University. These were shorter courses than the regular semester-long 16-week courses, as they lasted 3-4 weeks each with one weekly meeting of an hour and a half. While there was no assessment of course material such as exams or readings, it was clear from the discussions and participation that the students, who were often retired members of the Bloomington community, were engaged with the material that I presented.

After my course on folklore and disaster concluded I heard back from a staff member at IU’s Lifelong Learning program who wrote:

“Jesse, I had a chance to look through your course evaluations today and every single person picked excellent for every category! The only complaint was that the class wasn’t long enough! I think our office assistant will send you a summary at some point, but I wanted to let you know. We’re lucky we found you and you’ll have to let me know when you’re ready to teach again.“

IU Lifelong-Learning coordinator, 2017