Teaching

Teaching Philosophy

[View teaching philosophy here]

. . . Most instructors such as myself use student-centered teaching strategies, but beyond that I have developed three key areas to emphasize what Showalter and others see as essential to the English classroom: digital or creative writing, ethics, and professionalization . . .

 (View the teaching philosophy link above to read more.)

Student Surveys

Click here for an overview of course evaluations from courses taught.

Teaching Awards

  • Excellence in Teaching Award, Purdue U (2019)
  • Quintilian Teaching Award, Purdue U (2019)
  • Excellence in Teaching Award, Purdue U (2018)
  • Quintilian Teaching Award, Purdue U (2018)
  • Quintilian Teaching Award, Purdue U (2017)

Courses Taught

  • These courses were taught as the instructor of record.

Davis & Elkins College

  • ENGL 360 – 1947: South Asian Literature and Postcolonialism
    • Modernist and Contemporary South Asian literature revolving around the events before, during, and after the Partition of India in 1947. Texts include Untouchable by Mulk Raj Anand, Train to Pakistan by Khushwant Singh, Cracking India by Bapsi Sidwha, and East, West: Stories by Salman Rushdie.
  • COMM 325 – Environmental Communication
  • ENGL 326 – Writing for the Community (service learning)
  • ENGL 324 – Writing in the Genres (multimodal writing)
    • Advanced writing course that focuses on nontraditional genres, including new media. Students develop literary journalism, graphic narratives, and podcasts. They learn skills for interviewing, ethical reporting, and writing creative nonfiction; how to collaborate with other artists to create a graphic narrative; and how to use recording equipment and sound-editing software.
  • ENGL 323 // COMM 323 – Rhetorical Theory
    • Advanced theory course for writing and communication majors. This course focuses on a topical approach, particularly modern and contemporary theory (and its applications). Topics include digital rhetoric, non-Western rhetorics, and critical theory.
  • ENGL 204 – Professional and Technical Writing
  • ENGL 202 – Introduction to English Studies (for majors)
  • ENGL 107 – Introduction to Literature (for non-majors)
  • ENGL 102 – College Writing II
    • Theme: Digital Cultures
  • ENGL 101 – College Writing I
    • Theme: Writing About Place
  • GIS 105 – First-Year Seminar
    • Theme: Graphic Novels and Comix.

Purdue University

  • ENGL 286 – The Movies: Film and Critical Theory
    • [View Syllabus Here]
    • Cultural film studies course that centers on historical fiction and speculative/science fiction. Key ideas include the politics of aesthetics and historiography, as well as critical theory. Movies included everything from Eisenstein’s Battleship Potemkin to Deepa Mehta’s Water to Linklater’s A Scanner Darkly.
  • ENGL 250 – National Narratives and Great American Books
    • [View Syllabus Here]
    • Literary studies course on great American books. Key ideas include how literature constructs national identity, as well as genre and (American) literary history. Books included Franklin’s Autobiography, Winesburg, Ohio, Sula, and The Namesake to name a few.
  • ENGL 106Y – Digital Rhetorics: An Introduction to Composition (ONLINE)
    • Introductory composition course taught online, with a focus on digital communication. Projects include discussion forums, technical reports, advocacy infographics, and so forth.
  • ENGL 106 – Composing through Narratives: Introductory Composition
    • [View Syllabus Here]
    • Introductory composition course that uses literature to emphasize links between reading and writing critically. Projects include creative nonfiction essays, digital posters, and evaluative reports, and so forth.