As I sit here studying for my Calculus II exam, I can’t help but think of the side comments that my professor (or rather assistant clinical professor), Jennifer Blue, made when presenting the material during lecture. She never just lectures; there are always things she says and does that engages her students and enables them to recall the information being taught. Jen Blue, as she is called by her students, truly enjoys having the opportunity to lay a solid calculus foundation on which careers will be built. For this reason, it is a shame the Department of Mathematical Sciences will be losing such a unique professor.
Being a freshman, I haven’t had the chance to experience the difference between “good” and “bad” professors. If you asked me I would say that all of my professors have been good in one way or another.
Entering Sage 3303 for calculus on the first day of classes, I was greeted by this woman who couldn’t stop saying “y’all.” I thought, “Oh great, I got the crazy one.”
Yet it is this air of madness that allows Blue to connect with her students. She strives to ensure that each of the topics being covered is explained fully and in a number of methods. Never does she simply write a theorem on the overhead and call it a day; rather, she explains the topics using what she deems “Jen Math.”
In presenting the material, Blue structures her examples to demonstrate how calculus-based procedures, for instance using integration to find the area of a circle, can be done using geometry—in what she calls “showing that calculus isn’t math magic.” For students who are learning the subject for the first time, this use of a tool like geometry allows students to take what they already know and understand and apply it to the new topic. For many students who find themselves confused, it isn’t that they don’t understand the large scale topic, but rather are unsure about the smaller details. Blue ensures that her students understand these smaller-scale ideas, allowing them to more thoroughly grasp the greater picture.
Like many professors, Blue has structured her lectures for use of the iClicker. This semester Blue took the use of iClickers to the next level. Many times students, like myself, have brain freezes and forget simple math such as natural logarithms, things that were covered in the Ready… Set… Calculus book given to freshmen before their first semester. Blue recognized this and developed the idea to use iClickers in her recitations to give short two- to five-minute quizzes on this basic material. By using iClickers in recitation, not only did students review vital math skills, but attendance for Blue’s recitation classes increased.
Isn’t it rare to find a professor who enjoys working with students to the extent that Jen Blue does? Isn’t it important that students understand the material being presented, enabling them to build upon this foundation in the years to come? Isn’t it a shame that RPI’s Department of Mathematical Sciences is losing a professor who truly demonstrates her passion for teaching in every aspect of her career?
