MY COURSES
Since 1998 I have been teaching a variety of courses on media, gender, race, intercultural communication, and globalization at US and European institutions. Below are some of my most recent courses:
Since 1998 I have been teaching a variety of courses on media, gender, race, intercultural communication, and globalization at US and European institutions. Below are some of my most recent courses:
ITAL4030 Blog
ITAL4030 Italy: Media and Culture
ITAL1500 Introduction to Italian Culture
ITAL4160 Gender, Sexuality and the European City
ITAL3010 Advanced Conversation and Composition
COMM4510 Seminar in Gender and Communication
COMM3410 Intercultural Communication
JOUR4711 Media and Culture
ITAL4030 Italy: Media and Culture
ITAL1500 Introduction to Italian Culture
ITAL4160 Gender, Sexuality and the European City
ITAL3010 Advanced Conversation and Composition
COMM4510 Seminar in Gender and Communication
COMM3410 Intercultural Communication
JOUR4711 Media and Culture
JOUR4321 Media Institutions and Economics
JOUR4201 International Mass Communication
WGST 593 Global Feminisms
COMM305 Introduction to Mass Communication
MY TEACHING PHILOSOPHY
Teaching is for me a cooperative effort where students and teacher are equally engaged in an intellectual exchange that will ultimately benefit both parties involved. The teacher is not the ‘fountain of all knowledge’, but rather shares with students her expertise and listens to students’ own experiences. This exchange brings to an intellectually stimulating dialog where students are encouraged to examine the course materials and complete the assignments in a critical way. In this sense, I believe in the need to relate theoretical reading materials to real-life examples, visual texts, and personal experiences. While holding a position of authority in the classroom, as a teacher I attempt not to be authoritarian, but rather foster a learning community founded upon respect and trust of all the course participants. I emphasize cultural and gender diversity through my feminist perspective and my multicultural experience. In fact, I believe that cultural sensitivity and respect shape more fruitful in-class discussions, but also endow students with a more critical reception of the assigned materials.
In the classroom I strive to achieve a comfortable and pleasant atmosphere, where all students feel free to express their thoughts, voice their opinions, or question the reading materials. Lively and heated discussions are welcome in the courses I teach as they make for a more contextualized and enriching learning environment. Yet, I work towards establishing specific rules of conduct, whereby boundaries of respect and trust will not be overcome by any class member. In my syllabi and through my in-class behavior I emphasize the complete need to attend to class, gender, race, ethnic, religious, and age differences and respect each member as an individual.
A student-centered teaching process is essential to successful learning. My focus on students’ progress highlights my belief in the centrality of student learning needs. Indeed, rather than a passive student body who takes in all knowledge, I attempt to foster an engaged student group who feels at ease expressing their views on the course issues. I do not see myself as a teacher who presents all the answers; instead, my aim is to provide students with the critical intellectual and analytical tools they need to examine and evaluate specific matters. This, I believe, will ultimately be more productive and beneficial to students at the end of their course of study.
To be an engaged teacher it is important for me to be part of a supportive teaching and scholarly community. I strongly believe in the cooperation between teachers to share ideas, confront approaches, discuss goals, and evaluate performances. This is for me an important step in my efforts to become a better teacher. Similarly, I consider my role as an active scholar inseparable from a successful teaching experience: keeping track of the scholarly developments in my area of research is fundamental to provide students with the appropriate analytical tools to analyze cultures.
In conclusion, I believe in a much more holistic approach to teaching, where students and teacher are not only present in the classroom with their intellectual abilities, but as individuals, with different experiences and backgrounds. Mutual respect, honesty, exploration, open-mindedness, and a genuine concern for learning are key principles in my teaching and in my classroom.
JOUR4201 International Mass Communication
WGST 593 Global Feminisms
COMM305 Introduction to Mass Communication
MY TEACHING PHILOSOPHY
Teaching is for me a cooperative effort where students and teacher are equally engaged in an intellectual exchange that will ultimately benefit both parties involved. The teacher is not the ‘fountain of all knowledge’, but rather shares with students her expertise and listens to students’ own experiences. This exchange brings to an intellectually stimulating dialog where students are encouraged to examine the course materials and complete the assignments in a critical way. In this sense, I believe in the need to relate theoretical reading materials to real-life examples, visual texts, and personal experiences. While holding a position of authority in the classroom, as a teacher I attempt not to be authoritarian, but rather foster a learning community founded upon respect and trust of all the course participants. I emphasize cultural and gender diversity through my feminist perspective and my multicultural experience. In fact, I believe that cultural sensitivity and respect shape more fruitful in-class discussions, but also endow students with a more critical reception of the assigned materials.
In the classroom I strive to achieve a comfortable and pleasant atmosphere, where all students feel free to express their thoughts, voice their opinions, or question the reading materials. Lively and heated discussions are welcome in the courses I teach as they make for a more contextualized and enriching learning environment. Yet, I work towards establishing specific rules of conduct, whereby boundaries of respect and trust will not be overcome by any class member. In my syllabi and through my in-class behavior I emphasize the complete need to attend to class, gender, race, ethnic, religious, and age differences and respect each member as an individual.
A student-centered teaching process is essential to successful learning. My focus on students’ progress highlights my belief in the centrality of student learning needs. Indeed, rather than a passive student body who takes in all knowledge, I attempt to foster an engaged student group who feels at ease expressing their views on the course issues. I do not see myself as a teacher who presents all the answers; instead, my aim is to provide students with the critical intellectual and analytical tools they need to examine and evaluate specific matters. This, I believe, will ultimately be more productive and beneficial to students at the end of their course of study.
To be an engaged teacher it is important for me to be part of a supportive teaching and scholarly community. I strongly believe in the cooperation between teachers to share ideas, confront approaches, discuss goals, and evaluate performances. This is for me an important step in my efforts to become a better teacher. Similarly, I consider my role as an active scholar inseparable from a successful teaching experience: keeping track of the scholarly developments in my area of research is fundamental to provide students with the appropriate analytical tools to analyze cultures.
In conclusion, I believe in a much more holistic approach to teaching, where students and teacher are not only present in the classroom with their intellectual abilities, but as individuals, with different experiences and backgrounds. Mutual respect, honesty, exploration, open-mindedness, and a genuine concern for learning are key principles in my teaching and in my classroom.
