Joe Mazer Graduate Assistant Outstanding Teaching Award Recipient, 2008

Second year graduate student Joe Mazer is no stranger to great teaching.  After all, his research interests generally revolve around how teachers use communication in classroom settings to help students learn.  And, Joe is quite accomplished as a researcher in this area, having published nearly 20 articles already.  After reviewing his resume, you might conclude that Joe is becoming an expert at studying great teaching.

Last Spring, however, Joe received recognition for his own work as a teacher. Each year the Center for Teaching Excellence, on behalf of the Provost, recognizes outstanding teaching among graduate students.  In 1987, the Graduate Associate Outstanding Teaching Award (GAOTA) was inaugurated by the Provost to recognize outstanding teaching done by graduate teaching associates at Ohio University. Unlike other universities with similar awards, the selection process at Ohio University is conducted entirely by undergraduate students who volunteer their time to serve on the selection committee. The Center for Teaching and Learning sponsors the award.

The selection process for the Outstanding Teaching Award is very rigorous.  Undergraduate students are contacted by e-mail and asked to nominate Teaching Associates for the award.  After a list of finalists are determined from the nominations, a committee of undergraduate students observe the nominees classes over the course of a quarter.  Toward the end of the process the nominees are also interviewed by members of the student selection committee.  At the end of the process the committee selects up to four recipients for the award who are then recognized at special ceremony.

Students who have had Joe for class will not be surprised about his award.  “I love teaching and I love communication,” said Mazer. “When these two areas merge, I can think of no better place to be—the classroom. I find it especially rewarding to help students learn to make better communication choices in life and ultimately assist them in become competent, critical, and ethical members of society.”  Joe has taught a variety of classes for the school including Small Group Communication, Quantitative Research Methods,  Interpersonal Communication and the Basic Course.  In Fall of 2007 Joe was also placed in charge of a new undergraduate TA program in COMS 101.  In that role Joe trained and supervised over 30 undergraduate TAs who worked as discussion leaders in the 400 person “Introduction to Communication” mass lecture.

In short, Mazer has not shied away from challenging teaching assignments.  Not surprisingly, his teaching philosophy highlights his willingness to take risks as a teacher.  “I view teaching as a challenging and complex enterprise. At the foundation of my teaching philosophy is a goal to prepare students to make better communication choices in life. For me, learning is a shared process between a teacher and his or her students that must extend beyond the walls of a single classroom. In the classes I teach, students are not simply passive receptors of course material; students are active agents in the learning process. Students engage in thoughtful discussions about communication concepts, are required to think-on-their-feet during discussions, learn from each other in small group activities, and demonstrate their knowledge through in-class exercises that emphasize the importance of becoming competent, critical, and ethical members of society.”

In addition to serving as a valued teacher in our school, Joe continues his active research program in instructional communication.  Joe explained, “My dissertation research is examining the role of communication and emotion in teaching and learning. I am exploring how teachers can create cognitive interest and emotional interest in students and ultimately cause them to be more engaged in their learning. What I think is most exciting is that the research I conduct extends beyond the walls of communication classrooms because instructional communication research can be applied to teachers of all academic specialties. In the research process, I find it exciting to ask and answer questions about the role of communication in teaching and learning and then implement those findings in the classes I teach and in teacher training programs.”

Joe’s award continues a COMS tradition of having outstanding undergraduate teachers among the ranks of our graduate students.  And, importantly, Joe illustrates how our school supports the notion that excellence in research and teaching are not binary opposites, but rather, can work hand-in-hand.