The Future Faculty Graduate Student Instructor (FFGSI) program supports the professional development of graduate students who are interested in working with faculty and staff on an educational development project. Projects support the educational mission of the department and include a range of activities such as course development and outreach. Only graduate students in the UM Department of Chemistry who are assigned as a graduate student instructor (GSI) can participate. The program releases GSIs from 50% of their appointment, enabling them to devote ~10 hours a week toward their selected FFGSI project.
If you are interested in participating as an FFGSI, read the project descriptions provided below and email the faculty member who is leading the project. General questions about the program should be directed to Prof. Ginger Shultz at gshultz@umich.edu.
2024-2025 FFGSI Projects
AI-based Approach to Improve Students’ Ability to Engage with Scientific Literature
Dr. Yulia Sevryugin yulias@umich.edu, Dr. Kevyn Collins-Thompson (UMSI)
As early as 1990, Gopen and Swan suggested that writing and reading are closely related skills, and that scientific writing can only be improved through understanding of how readers go about their reading. Writing an experimental report or a literature mini-review is now the common assignment in Chemistry classes, where students’ skills to read scientific manuscripts are often taken for granted. Reading difficulties impede students’ understanding of technical literature, as well as its analysis and synthesis. As a result, students’ mini-review papers are often simple, superficial summaries of scholarly works that students reviewed for the study, as opposed to insightful synthesis that results from deeper understanding of the reading materials. With a MIDAS grant, Dr. Sevryugina is set to explore how people learn new technical vocabulary, what surrounding contexts are most helpful for this learning, and how literacy training in STEM can be enhanced through AI-based approaches that leverage recent advances in deep learning for novel prediction tasks that involve modeling the difficulty and contextual informativeness of technical content. The FFGSI will assist Dr. Sevryugina in the development of the above-mentioned project and applying it to teaching scientific writing in Chemistry courses Specific activities include analysis of students’ written reports, development and implementation of a special vocabulary, students recruitment for focus groups, selection and distribution of instructional materials for the class, collection of students’ feedback, as well as technical assistance and general guidance to students provided on daily basis throughout their coursework.
Chem 516 - Professional Skill Development in Chemistry
Dr. Julie Biteen jsbiteen@umich.edu
Chem 516 aims to prepare University of Michigan Chemistry PhD students for their future professional careers by complementing skills gained through the completion of a research-based thesis with instruction in: proposal writing; reading and analyzing publications; communication; and academic professional guidelines in Chemistry. The FFGSI will assist in shaping and implementing the curriculum including designing training exercises, developing assessment rubrics, creating evaluation metrics, and coordinating with programming partners including the UM Library, Sweetland Writing Center, Rackham, and CAPS.
CHEM 260, 461, 463 (Physical Chemistry) Development of Interactive Computer Demos for Undergraduate Physical Chemistry Courses
Prof. Eitan Geva eitan@umich.edu
A new pedagogy, called Compute-to-Learn (C2L), is being implemented within the framework of a supplemental, peer-led weekly 2 hour session, in a studio environment, where undergraduate students enrolled in introductory Physical Chemistry courses (Chem260 and Chem230) collaborate to create interactive computer demonstrations of basic Physical Chemistry concepts, using Wolfram Mathematica (a powerful computing environment commonly used in academia, industry, and education). The C2L pedagogy emphasizes action-based learning activities designed to promote students’ integration of new idea, within a collaborative apprenticeship environment that mimics the authentic experience of how science is done in real life. Senior undergraduate students who participated in a previous iteration of the studio serve as peer leaders whose role is to guide activities and help the students stay on track towards completing the project within the 13-week semester. The FFGSIs assigned to this project will be charged with further development of the pedagogy and assessment tools of its impact on students learning and outlook, as well as training, supervising and mentoring the undergraduate peer leaders and coordinating studio activities.”
CHEM 216, Lab Practical Implementation and Development
Prof. John Wolfe jpwolfe@umich.edu
This project will involve the continued development of an end-of term lab practical exercise for Chem 216. Initial stages have seen the successful implementation and refinement of the exercise, as well as adjustments to the weekly laboratory schedule to complement the practical mode of assessment and desired learning outcomes for Chem 216. Further work in Fall 2023 will include further refinements to the weekly assignments of the Chem 216 curriculum; characterizing student perceptions and student learning outcomes based on the changes made; characterizing the impacts this course structure has on other invested parties, especially GSIs and lab support staff; and organizing the curriculum products into a consolidated package of files and instructions, to enable incoming instructors to take full advantage of the materials.
CHEM 352/353 Course Development
Prof. Sarah Keane sckeane@umich.edu
This project will involve the development and implementation of new Biochemistry lab exercises for Chem 352/353. In Fall 2024, the FFGSI will evaluate current learning goals and objectives and develop and/or implement new laboratory exercises to meet those objectives.
Graduate Student Instructor Support and Professional Development in Chemistry
Prof. Ginger Shultz gshultz@umich.edu
College-level chemistry instructors typically learn about teaching on the job, often relying on imperfect feedback (i.e., student evaluations) to improve their teaching. The FFGSI will develop training activities to support graduate student instructors (GSIs) and assist in identifying, adapting, and developing tools that can help GSIs reflect on their teaching and grow as educators. The FFGSI will learn about educator professional development and evaluation.
