At the University of Groningen, I typically teach the following courses:
Honours Professionalization Seminar (coordinator, Honours Bachelor)
Global Political Economy (lectures + tutorials, course coordinator, BA-level)
Globalization Debates (coordination, lectures + tutorials, MA-level)
Honours Seminar II (Honours Bachelor)
BSc Thesis IB (tutorials, BA-level)
Research Paper for E&BE (tutorials, BA-level), only in academic year 2019-20.
I am also involved in the PhD supervision of Pawani Dasgupta, Viliana Milanova, Daniele Marchesi, Stefan Sliwa, and Robin Konietzny.
I have also supervised 15 (+) Master-level and 62 Bachelor-level theses to date.
Teaching Experience. I have been teaching since I was a second-year undergraduate student in 2005. Since then, I have taught and coordinated a wide range of courses at the graduate and undergraduate level, as evidenced by my CV. I also have experience teaching online, including coordinating a large-scale course with 600 students in 2020. Furthermore, I also have experience supervising Bachelor-, Master-, and PhD-level students. My training and teaching expertise lies in quality of life measurement, labor and development economics, global political economy, and public policy. I obtained the Dutch teaching qualification (BKO) in July 2019.
Teaching style. First, it is important to me that students understand how concepts and topics covered in class relate to real-world situations. For example, if possible, I present a puzzle or a paradox at the beginning of class and rely on case studies and practical examples to help students connect abstract concepts with hands-on knowledge. These teaching techniques also prevent the mere memorization of concepts and make learning active and engaging. Besides, throughout the lectures, I pose short questions that make students active agents in the learning process, sharpen their critical thinking, and make logical connections between new and old concepts.
Second, my teaching incorporates quantitative explanations alongside historical, philosophical, and social aspects of the discipline. This allows students to engage their critical thinking to assess the validity of different viewpoints rather than making them passive recipients of knowledge. In my opinion, the instructor’s role is not to tell students what to think but to provide them with the scientific tools allowing them to reason for themselves, weigh arguments, and make their own informed decisions.
Third, I encourage students to ask meaningful questions in class or via a discussion forum online. Actively posing questions not only helps students gain valuable feedback and test their ideas but also allows the instructor to understand the particular needs of the student group. In addition, I view group projects as an effective strategy to develop a collaborative and collegial work environment through peer interaction. Group projects challenge students to incorporate factual knowledge with practical hands-on work and develop skills, which are directly applicable in real life.
I feel rewarded when I provide students with the capabilities they need to develop their talents. Successful education is one through which students are active agents in the learning process. The professor is a motivator and moderator assisting students in developing their skills and intellectual capacities and moral virtues that make them engaged and responsible citizens. I am firmly committed to dedicating my future to helping develop the intellectually curios and independently thinking minds of tomorrow.