Jorge Moreno
Physics and Astronomy
 It is an honor to
be nominated for this prize and to have the opportunity
to share some of the experiences that have shaped my philosophy as
a teacher.
Being a foreign student, I was terrified by having to teach American
students.
The first day, I was very nervous being in front of many new students
who were
expecting a lot from me. I was afraid that our cultural differences
and my
accent would be a major problem of communication. Nearly two years
have
passed, and I think I have made a lot of progress in teaching. Now
I firmly
believe that with dedication and enthusiasm anyone can become a teacher.
Most students I have encountered have the false impression that physics
is
such a hard subject that it takes a genius to understand it. The first
job of
a TA in my field is to convince them that they are more than capable
of
learning and enjoying such a beautiful subject. My approach is to
go beyond
what's being taught in the textbook. For example, a few weeks ago
my students
performed an experiment on Faraday's Law. The first thing they saw
in the lab
was two wire loops. To them, nothing could be more boring than a pair
of dull
wires with some current. When I explained that what's really happening
is that
one current creates a magnetic field which induces a current on the
other wire,
they stared at me in disbelief. Then the magic happened. I pulled
out a
compass out of my pocket and show them that there is indeed magnetism,
even
though they can't see it. It is so rewarding to see the expression
in their
faces when they learn that these invisible fields can be detected,
manipulated
and applied to most of our modern technology. But more importantly,
that they
can be understood.
Teaching undergraduates is a lot of fun and very satisfying, but
it
requires a lot of responsibility. Not only preparing the class and
grading on
time, but the fact that we play a major role in their growth as
professionals.
As a TA, I serve as a bridge between the students and the professor.
Although
I have a bit more experience, it wasn't too long ago that I was
in their
position. They seem to be more comfortable talking to me than to
the
professor, perhaps because of the age difference. I try to be available
to
them. My office door is always open and I reply their emails promptly.
They
know they can approach me on both the academic and the personal
level. I have
had students talk to me about the material in class, the research
I have done,
my life as a graduate student, and even about my kid! Nothing makes
learning
more efficient that having a friendly environment.
Another important issue is respect, which comes in various forms.
Being
fair and having a consistent grading policy is crucial. Both the
students and
the teacher are human beings. As humans, we have the tendency of
liking some
people more than others. Being aware of that, I make a huge effort
to not let
that influence their grade in any way. Refusing to be their friend
is not an
option, but neither is being unfair. Grades, therefore, must be
assigned
solely on the quality of the work of each individual student. Another
essential aspect is honesty. If a student has a question I don't
know the
answer to, I just face it and promise I'll have an answer by the
following day.
If instead I chose to make up an answer, not only would I mislead
the students
into a false idea, but they would lose all respect for me and would
never
approach me again.
Lastly, it is my desire to have my students leave my class not just
with a
grade, but with a little taste of my field. For instance, last semester
we
were doing an experiment with lasers in a dark room. The windows
were covered
with aluminum foil and had black paper curtains on them. So I decided
to make
a small hole on the foil. All of a sudden, an inverted image of
the street
outside was projected onto the paper. I showed this to my students
and
mentioned that this is precisely how Michaelangelo created many
of his
paintings. Then I explained how this phenomenon of light is related
to the
lasers they were studying, and to the electromagnetic waves they
saw in
lecture. I assigned them to investigate what gravitational waves
are, so they
could appreciate how various branches of physics are actually interconnected.
I have had students from a wide range of backgrounds and different
interests.
I understand that not all of them want to become physicists. Perhaps
many of
them will soon forget all the formulas in the textbook. But I am
sure they
will never forget that physics can be applied to many branches of
knowledge –
even art – and that it can be a lot of fun. No wonder many
people like me
spend their careers trying to understand the physical world.
Teaching such bright students has been a privilege and a very
rewarding
experience. After days of hard work, it is always refreshing to
see a group of
young curious students asking questions I had never thought of.
I love
physics, I love my students and I am very thankful that the University
of
Pennsylvania has given me the opportunity to be their teacher.
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