Damn! The world really needs this woman to get the job!

[NNadir]

From the Science careers section:

Combining teaching with research made me a better scientist

Subtitle:

Even research-focused faculty job searches should value teaching, this Ph.D. student writes

E. Celeste Welch Science, Working Life, Science 21 APRIL 2023 • VOL 380 ISSUE 6642 Page 314.

I arrived at the “future faculty” workshop hoping to glean tips on how to apply for tenure-track jobs. But when the time came to discuss my application materials, I was taken aback by the advice. “Cel,” the faculty mentor said hesitantly, “I’m going to give you some harsh advice that I think you need to hear. Try to tone down your service and teaching—it doesn’t make you look serious about research.” I felt my cheeks burning in embarrassment as some of the other attendees nodded their heads in agreement. And I left feeling bewildered. I’d spent years building up my teaching and mentoring skills and devoting myself to serving as a positive role model for students. Shouldn’t that hold value in a faculty job search? Why would I be penalized for it?

During graduate school, I had become passionate about making engineering accessible to everyone. I did not want others to feel like an imposter, as I did. As an undergraduate, advisers had told me I wasn’t cut out for a career in engineering. Convinced an academic position was off the table, I planned to pursue a position in industry after graduating. I submitted applications to graduate school on a whim. I was floored when I was accepted.

When I became a teaching assistant, I started out badly. I mirrored the methods that had been used on me for all my life—relying on traditionally structured lectures and high-stress assignments—and was frustrated when students did poorly. I expected a lot from them but was not sure how to give them the resources they needed to succeed.

In my third year, I decided to pursue a teaching certification. I learned that the methods I’d been using had long been debunked as ineffective, as they exacerbated performance gaps in students from marginalized backgrounds. I remembered that I excelled in courses with interactive lectures, small group work, low-stakes assignments, and caring professors who led with empathy. Such approaches, I realized, could help other marginalized students succeed...

...When I asked my mentors how to ensure I’d be competitive on the academic job market, they always said the same thing: be excellent in research, teaching, and service. But in the same breath they would remark on my teaching and service work, hinting that those who pursue such activities are best suited to serving as teaching faculty members or diversity, equity, and inclusion officers.

Then, at the future faculty workshop, it happened again. The advice rattled around my head long after. At first, I responded by reducing some of my nonresearch commitments. But then a mentee would need advice and I could feel the teaching skills I had spent time cultivating coming out. I vowed to not push those activities to the side to placate nearsighted views about how researchers on the academic track should allocate their time.

As I apply to faculty positions, I hope to land in a place that values my commitment to teach, serve, and care for my students. I’m not hiding my track record—I’m embracing it...

[erronis]

1. I'll read this some more, but the first thing that jumped out to me was enforcing "imposter syndrome

I think most normal people feel like they don't really have the "creds" to be doing what they are doing.

And I think that most people feeling like they are in this boat are actually far more capable than the ones that are acting like they do. Unfortunately the actors tend to float to the top of the cesspool (academic) and try to demean the ones that have the real skills.

[GeoWilliam750]

2. Oddly enough

Good mentoring will very commonly get one punished

[hunter]

3. By teaching and mentoring she's creating new threats to the "good old boys" who run everything.

My wife, a natural born teacher, has dealt with this kind of friction frequently in her career.

A good teacher is joyful when a student is successful. A good teacher doesn't see their students as potential threats or competitors who must be kept on short leashes.

A bad teacher, mentor, parent, boss, etc., will slap a kid in the face, "You think you're better than me?"

This explains the Republican assaults on education too. Educated people with good critical thinking skills are a direct threat to 21st century Republican political power, religions, and ideologies.

[BadgerKid]

4. Kudos to her if this is the battle she wants, but "doing research"

at a top-tier university is still about bringing in research grant money where "teaching" can be minimal if it is done well. I didn't read the article, but she could well be leaving the search committees unconvinced of her potential for this key role.

To my knowledge, smaller universities and colleges are very geared toward teaching careers, giving students a personal experience, and especially involving undergraduates in research. I know men and women who opted for this path.