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U N I V E R S I T Y O F P I T T S B U R G H |
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Volume VIII, Number 1 |
September 2002 |
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U N I V E R S I T Y O F P I T T S B U R G H |
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Volume VIII, Number 1 |
September 2002 |
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Bellet Teaching Awards As a teacher “dedicated
to exploring and explaining the complex interaction between language,
literature, cinema, and drama,” Keiko McDonald, East Asian Languages
and Literature, focuses on her students and on the overall learning
process. She says, “I emphasize the interaction with students. This
personal interaction is of paramount importance to undergraduates. Therefore,
I make sure I’m very available to them.” A Pitt faculty member for over 25 years, McDonald particularly enjoys teaching about her native country, noting that Pitt students welcome learning about Japanese language, literature, and film. “I am grateful to my students and sometimes astonished by their frank and energetic engagement with a culture so different from theirs. It is a pleasure to schedule crowded office hours for students so refreshingly forthright, so eager to make contact with both teacher and subject matter,” she elaborates. McDonald’s commitment to students and to their learning experience extends beyond the classroom. She finds herself “taking an interest in all aspects of student life,” something reflected in her participation in a wide variety of campus activities. She points out, “Many of my advisees go to Japan to teach English in the Japanese Exchange and Teaching Program. Several years ago I wrote reference letters for eight of my students, and seven were chosen to participate.” In addition to focusing on students, McDonald believes that another significant role as a teacher is to be a “student of students.” She says, “The longer I teach, the more like a student I feel.” By valuing student interaction, she finds it possible to learn from students while teaching them. While working on her undergraduate education in Japan, McDonald “found the teaching method there is so different; there’s hardly any interaction between students and teachers.” Here, she is “always learning from my students; we’re learning from one another.” McDonald realizes, however, that it is not just her role as teacher/student that contributes to her continuing classroom success. As she notes, “My students, my colleagues, my department chair – without their assistance, none of this would be possible.” | |||||||||||||||
| A newsletter devoted to the support of teaching and learning at the University of Pittsburgh |
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| Center
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