TEACHING PHILOSOPHY
"Those that know, do. Those that understand, teach. " -- Aristotle.
My teaching philosophy is based on three simple tenets: planning, preparation, and enthusiasm. This mirrors my research philosophy in many ways. Planning defines the high-level course goals and what students are expected to acquire from the course. This is analogous to defining a research problem and setting a research agenda to solve it, but with a different objective function to measure success. Preparation includes the activities involved in the week-to-week delivery of the course to the students and ultimately results in meeting the planned objectives. Finally, my own experience sitting in a classroom or attending conference presentations has taught me that there is no substitute for enthusiasm. If the teacher is unable to convey his interest in the material, then there is little chance that the students will independently acquire that interest.
I teach both undergraduate and graduate Computer Science courses. My teaching goals for undergraduate courses are to help students develop the ability to think critically and independently. This includes learning problem solving skills that will be useful well after the course is finished. For graduate courses, my teaching goals are to stimulate interest in the material that encourages exploration outside the confines of the classroom, and hopefully generates interest in research topics. To achieve these goals, all my courses involve substantial, systems-oriented projects.
I have created and offered graduate-level courses in several key areas of Computer Networking: Internet Technologies and Protocols, Optical Networks, Survivability, and Performance Evaluation. I have also taught and made contributions to the core undergraduate Data Structures course and the undergraduate elective Computer Networks course.
I am an avid proponent of distance education, and I have been an active participant in the College's distance education program by offering several courses through Engineering Online. One of the aspects of teaching that interests me most is to explore innovative ways for using new technology in the classroom, not just for presentation purposes but also for actively engaging students in the learning process.
I also understand that my role as a teacher does not end when I leave the classroom. I have been actively involved in advising and mentoring students since early on. For my MS and PhD students, I strive to be more than just a research advisor. I encourage them to think beyond the research problem at hand, and to consider the wider impact and implications of their research activities, decisions, and actions. I also recognize diversity and encourage different points of view and ways of thinking. I intend to continue to work with my students not just as part of their research activities, but also to help them define a meaningful role for themselves in the society at large.