Teaching Portfolio
Monika J. Ulrich
Department of Sociology
Prepared for the Undergraduate Studies Committee
February 21, 2008
Table of Contents
Curriculum Vitae 3
Teaching Statement 6
Overview 6
Philosophy 6
Evidence of Teaching Effectiveness--Quantitative 9
Evidence of Teaching Effectiveness--Qualitative 7
Professional Development 7
Sample Course Materials 10
Introduction to Sociology (Sociology 101) 11
Movie: Trading Places 12
Gender Identities, Interactions, and Relationships (Sociology 222) 14
Syllabus 15
Paper #2 22
A Doll’s House Assignment 24
Gender Terminology Worksheet 25
Sociology of Families and Households (Sociology 321) 27
Recognizing the Author’s Personal Opinion Worksheet 28
Costs of Childcare 31
Sociology of Gender (Sociology 459) 37
Syllabus 38
Paper #3 50
Sociology of the Body (Sociology 448) 51
Term Paper (Summer 2007) 52
Syllabus (Spring 2008) 55
Quantitative Evaluations (Attached) 72
Curriculum Vitae
Monika J. Ulrich, M.A.
Department of Sociology Ph: (510) 282-5443
Social Science Bldg. 400 FAX: (520) 621-9875
PO Box 210027
University of Arizona www.u.arizona.edu/~mjulrich
Tucson, Arizona 85721-0027
Education
B.S., Sociology, Brigham Young University, 2002
M.A., Sociology, University of Arizona, May 2005
Thesis title: Foster Parent Satisfaction: Differences by Gender
Doctoral Candidate, Sociology, University of Arizona
Working Dissertation Title: Dual Daddies: Low-Income Non-Residential Biological and Residential Non-Biological Fatherhood.
Comprehensive Exams
Fall 2005 Sociology of Gender Honors Pass
Spring 2006 Sociology of the Family Pass
Research
My research centers on the intersection of the family and gender. I am particularly interested in men’s reproductive experiences and their transition to fatherhood. I have used a broad range of qualitative and quantitative methods in my research, including interviews, ethnography, basic regression, and structural equation modeling. My dissertation focuses on how low-income men negotiate fathering roles and identities with two sets of children: their biological non-residential children and their non-biological residential children.
Academic Honors
2003 Fellowship, University of Arizona
2003-2005 Graduate Assistantship, University of Arizona
2005-Present Graduate Associateship, University of Arizona
Presentations
August 2005 International Foster Care Organization, Madison Wisconsin. “Foster Parent Satisfaction: Differences by Gender”
August 2006 American Sociological Association, Montreal, Canada. “Gender Labor: The Construction of Masculinity and Femininity in Childbirth Education Classes.”
August 2007 American Sociological Association, New York, New York. “Foster Parent Satisfaction: Differences by Gender.”
[forthcoming] April 2008 Pacific Sociological Association, Portland, Oregon. “Irresponsible Speech: Clarifying the Differences between Behavior and Identity in Sexuality Research” with Cindy Cain, Jason Crockett, Karen Gordon, Sarah Strand, and Megan Wright.
[forthcoming] April 2008 Pacific Sociological Association, Portland, Oregon. “One Skill Embedding in Sociology Courses”
[forthcoming] April 2008 Pacific Sociological Association, Portland, Oregon. “Manly Birth: Hegemonic Masculinity in Childbirth Education”
Publications
Ulrich, Monika. 2007. “Assessing the Costs of Childcare: An In Class Activity (Activity/Exercise)” in Sweet, Stephen, Marcie Pitt-Catsouphes, Joshua Mumm, Judith Casey, and Christina Matz. 2007. Teaching Work and Family: Strategies, Activities, and Syllabi. Washington DC: American Sociological Association
Ulrich, Monika. 2007. “The Differences between Sex and Gender” in Anderson, Erin and Susan J. Ferguson. 2007. Teaching the Sociology of the Body: a Collection of Syllabi, Assignments, and other Resources. Washington D.C.: American Sociological Association. P. 157
Ulrich, Monika. 2007. “Writing on the Body (Activity/Exercise)” in Anderson, Erin and Susan J. Ferguson. 2007. Teaching the Sociology of the Body: a Collection of Syllabi, Assignments, and other Resources. Washington D.C.: American Sociological Association. P. 159
Ulrich, Monika. 2007. “Family and Gender Violence Discussion” in Barbara Keating. 2007. Teaching and Gender and Violence: A Collection of Instructional Materials, 4th edition. Washington, DC: American Sociological Association.
Ulrich, Monika. 2007. “Sociology of Race, Race as a Social Construct, In-Class Activity” in Cunnigen, Donald. 2007. Teaching Race and Ethnic Relations: Syllabi and Instructional Materials, 5th edition. Washington, DC: American Sociological Association. p. 359
Papers in Process
“Gender Labor: Teaching Fatherhood in Childbirth Education Classes”
Status: I am in the process of the final revision prior to journal submission
“Foster Parent Satisfaction: Differences by Gender”
Status: I am incorporating feedback I received from Families in Society
Research Experience
2003-2005 Research assistant to Sarah Soule, Ph.D. Analyzed social movement data from 1963-1987 and recent changes in state employment law.
Teaching Experience
Summer 2005 SOC 222 “Gender Identities, Interactions, and Relationships”
Fall 2005 SOC 101 “Introduction to Sociology”
Spring 2006 SOC 222 “Gender Identities, Interactions, and Relationships”
Summer 2006 SOC 321 “Sociology of Family and Households”
Fall 2006 SOC 321 “Sociology of Family and Households”
Spring 2007 SOC 459 “Sociology of Gender”
Summer 2007 SOC 448 “Sociology of the Body”
Spring 2008 SOC 448 “Sociology of the Body”
2006-Present SOC 4321 Correspondence Course: “Sociology of Family and
Households”
New Courses Developed
Sociology of the Body
Professional Memberships
American Sociological Association
Society for Women in Sociology (SWS)
Pacific Sociological Association
Society for Women in Sociology—Tucson (founder, President)
University Service
2005-2006 school year Undergraduate Studies Committee Graduate Student Representative
Professional References
Louise Roth, Ph.D. University of Arizona, Department of Sociology, PO Box 210027, 400 Social Science Bldg. Tucson, AZ 85721 (520) 621-3525 email:
Jane Zavisca, Ph.D. University of Arizona, Department of Sociology, PO Box 210027, 400 Social Science Bldg. Tucson, AZ 85721 (520) 621-3531 email:
Erin Leahey, Ph.D. University of Arizona, Department of Sociology, PO Box 210027, 400 Social Science Bldg. Tucson, AZ 85721 (520) 621-9351 email:
Louis Hicks, Ph.D. St. Mary’s College of Maryland, Chair, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, St. Mary’s City, MD 20686 (240) 895-4915 email:
Ashley Hunsaker, B.S. University of Arizona, Department of Sociology Alumni 3079 N.Sparkman, Tucson AZ 85716 (520) 808-7272 email:
Teaching Statement
Overview
I have taught eight courses while a graduate student:
SOC 101 Introduction to Sociology
SOC 222 Gender Identities, Interactions, and Relationships (2 semesters)
SOC 321 Sociology of the Family (2 semesters plus correspondence course)
SOC 448 Sociology of the Body (2 semesters)
SOC 459 Sociology of Gender (2 semesters)
Philosophy
I have three major goals as a sociology instructor: I want students to learn how social theory matters, I want them to learn how to think, and I want them to believe sociological research. I believe that my role, as an instructor, is to be an enthusiastic and knowledgeable resource that students can draw from as they develop themselves in these three areas.
First, I want students to see how social theory matters. To do this, many of my courses, readings, activities, and even exams run in two phases: we learn some social theories, and then we practice applying those theories to a variety of real life situations. For example, after learning the difference between biological essentialist and social constructionist approaches to gender, we watch clips from a TV show and practice identifying which approach the television characters are using. I believe that it is by actually practicing sociological principles that students are able to see the connection between social theory and their lives.
Second, I want students to learn how to think. Students in my class spend a substantial amount of time learning how to recognize bias and problematize the sociological literature that they read, lectures that I give and their social world. I want students to develop the skill of healthy cynicism and critical thinking. I define critical thinking as the ability to recognize logical flaws, tolerate ambiguity in social debates, understand and empathize with positions that threaten deeply held values and beliefs, and identify biases in written and oral presentations. I organize many of my course activities around practicing these critical thinking skills.
Third, I want students to believe sociological research. Many students are able to recite sociological research, theory, and conclusions, and even apply these principles in exams. However, I realized recently that even my top students did not necessarily believe the information that they had been taught. My new goal as a sociology instructor is for students to actually believe the social constructionist viewpoint, believe that social inequality exists, and believe that sociological research is superior to common sense. I often anonymously poll students to directly ask them whether they believe what they’ve just been taught and, if not, what they do believe. I then use those responses to craft the next lecture.
To help students accomplish these goals, I strive to empower them as much as possible over the course organization, structure and content. I believe that when students take control over their own education they become more invested in the outcome. For example, this semester, individual students are able to select whether to write a comprehensive term paper or whether to do additional reading. Because I believe that people learn best through teaching, I also work to put students in teaching and facilitating roles.
As a role model to my students, I personally work to practice evidence-based teaching rather than practicing common-sense teaching. I am convinced by recent research that the learner-centered teaching practices I use are more effective than traditional teaching methods. I am committed to ongoing learning about best teaching practices.
Professional Development
I am pursuing the Certificate in College Teaching organized by the University of Arizona Teaching Center. This certificate requires three courses on teaching, including a supervised teaching course. I have had five teaching exercises and activities included in teaching manuals produced by the American Sociological Association. In 2005-2006, I served on the Undergraduate Studies Committee, where I had the opportunity to help revise the teaching requirements for graduate students. In April, I will present a teaching-based paper at the Pacific Sociological Association meeting about embedding basic skills in Sociology courses.
Evidence of Teaching Effectiveness--Qualitative
Qualitative evaluations offer a more complete picture of what students experience in my courses. The following excerpts are taken from written comments on official student evaluations. Complete qualitative evaluations are included in this folder.
I liked how Monika was really passionate about social issues, and it was obvious she knows a lot about the subject.
Instructor knew her stuff. Taught with excitement.
Professor Ulrich really seemed interested in her subject and teaching.
Teacher unbiased and amazing!
Monika is a great motivator who did an outstanding job in teaching this course this semester. I enjoyed it very well!
The instructor was very enthusiastic. She likes to teach. We need good teachers nowadays.
Monika is an amazing teacher. She tries very hard to present the information in many different ways.
The instructor’s enthusiasm made the class that much more interesting. I was willing to learn more knowing the instructor cared about the class.
Professor Ulrich has a good teaching method that makes her students reflect on the reasons they have the opinions and perceptions they hold.
Teacher was unbiased and presented both sides of arguments. I loved how she made us think, question, and form our own opinions. This was an awesome class.
Monika has an exceptional amount of enthusiasm for teaching!
Ms. Ulrich was a great teacher. Very enthusiastic, well organized, and always made class enjoyable.
The instructor was really effective. I enjoyed her teaching and enthusiasm for the subject.
The instructor knew her stuff and taught with excitement.
Really helpful teacher in and out of class.
Great professor. Very interesting and respectful.
You related to us well and used a variety of teaching and testing methods
Learned an exceptional amount. She taught with great knowledge. One of the best teachers I’ve ever had. Great learning environment.
I thought this class was very interesting and it made me think about things that I maybe never thought about in that way before.
Evidence of Teaching Effectiveness--Quantitative
The table below represents a selection of quantitative data provided by official student evaluations. Numbers in parentheses are comparison means provided by the Office of Instructional Assessment, University of Arizona. Complete teaching evaluation data is available in the appendix. The University of Arizona asks student to rank their course experiences on a five point scale (1=low quality and 5=high quality). I am pleased that students have ranked my courses above average in six of the eight courses I have taught.
Overall Teaching Effectiveness / Overall Rating of the Course / Amount Learned / Overall Instructor ComparisonSoc 222
Gender Identities, Interactions, and Relationships / 4.6
(4.3) / 4.0
(3.9) / 4.2
(4.0) / 4.4
(3.9)
Soc 222 (Spring 06) / 4.5
(4.1) / 4.0
(3.7) / 4.0
(3.7) / 3.9
(3.7)
Soc 101
Introduction to Sociology / 4.6
(4.1) / 4.4
(3.7) / 4.4
(3.7) / 4.5
(3.7)
Soc 321
Sociology of the Family / 4.5
(4.3) / 4.1
(4.0) / 4.2
(4.0) / 3.9
(3.9)
Soc 321 (Fall 06)
Sociology of the Family / 4.0
(4.2) / 3.6
(3.8) / 3.7
(3.9) / 3.5
(3.8)
Soc 448
Sociology of the Body / 4.1
(4.3) / 3.5
(4.0) / 3.7
(4.0)
Soc 459 (section 2)
Sociology of Gender / 4.6
(4.2) / 4.1
(3.8) / 4.3
(3.9) / 4.3
(3.8)
Soc 459 (section 3)
Sociology of Gender / 4.5
(4.2) / 4.2
(3.8) / 4.2
(3.9) / 4.3
(3.8)
Sample Course Materials
Materials are organized by the difficulty level of the course.
Introduction to Sociology (Sociology 101)
There are two very different approaches to teaching Introduction to Sociology. First, a teacher can use this course to get students interested in majoring in Sociology. Second, a teacher can use this course to teach basic sociological principles to students who will probably not pursue a career in Sociology. I tend toward the latter. My goal in Introduction to Sociology is to teach future lawyers, doctors, engineers, bank accountants, and other non-Sociologists what a social construct is, how to make sense of sociological research, and how sociology differs from related fields.
I use the movie Trading Places (included) to practice applying terms that the students have already learned. In this comedy, two wealthy friends debate whether nature or nurture is responsible for success. They do an experiment where they force one of their wealthy White employees to swap roles with a poor, Black con artist. The film portrays multiple subcultures, exemplifies a poorly organized experiment, and discusses the nature versus nurture debate in an accessible way.
Movie: Trading Places
Sociology 101, Section 1
Introduction to Sociology
Fall 2005
Movie: Trading Places