Category Archives: Advice

Eigenightmares, Dancing Stick Figures, and the Advantages of a Spiral Approach to Pedagogy

Posted on April 6, 2016 by Matthew Simonson

For my next installment on innovative teaching techniques, I’d like to dredge another demon that haunted my nights long ago—EIGENVECTORS!  Normally, eigenvectors are introduced in the waning days of a first-year linear algebra course, when students’ minds are already saturated … Continue reading →

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Getting Students Used to Abstract Concepts

Posted on April 2, 2016 by Mohammed Kaabar

According to my experience teaching limits in Calculus for Life Scientists, it is really difficult for students to understand limits because they do not have the required knowledge on which to build the concept. I have noticed that even if they can handle and … Continue reading →

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Graduate School: Where Grades Don’t Matter

Posted on March 28, 2016 by Alexi

 Guest post by Tai-Danae Bradley Yesterday I received a disheartening 44/50 on a homework assignment. Okay okay, I know. 88% isn’t bad, but I had turned in my solutions with so much confidence that admittedly, my heart dropped a little (okay, a lot!) when … Continue reading →

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Preparing for Job Applications

Posted on March 11, 2016 by Mohammed Kaabar

Whether you are looking for a research job, teaching job, or position outside of academia, my advice for graduate students is to begin the job search process as early as possible. These days, candidates face several types of interviews—by video conference, phone, … Continue reading →

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Hookups, Dating, and Markov Chains: Teaching Matrices so that Your Students Won’t Hate Them, Part III

Posted on March 2, 2016 by Matthew Simonson

Having taught your students how to visualize matrix multiplication and why performing this bizarre dance of arithmetic could help make society a better place, the next logical step might be to raise a matrix to a power, say, to help your … Continue reading →

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