1996 Distinguished Teachers

The Committee on Teaching of the Berkeley Division of the Academic Senate Has Selected Five Faculty to Receive the Award for 1996

"I loved the course," says a student of Robert Full, "because I feel like I can now apply my knowledge to anything." The thrill of universal discovery is one of the elements that Full, professor of integrative biology, hopes to impart to his students. "I have been very fortunate," he says, "to have a host of outstanding Berkeley undergraduates in my research lab conduct truly benchmark original research, publish their results in the best journals and present their research at national meetings." In the last nine years, 26 of Full's undergraduates have made presentations at national and international meetings and he has co-authored 16 papers with undergraduates.

A strong component of Full's teaching is his belief that "the primary goal of the university is to develop a student's ability to think critically." As one student says, "His class is very challenging. I feel that it has pushed me to think more critically and more scientifically." In his lab courses, he does not lead students through prepared closed-ended experiments; rather, he gives them the tools and they must balance their own results against those in the literature, and defend their results to a group.

Full, recognized as one of the top researchers in the world in animal locomotion, is also frequently called on to talk about science and science education for the public; he has been featured in national magazines and television programs. He received his BA, MA, and PhD from the State University of New York at Buffalo and he joined the faculty in 1986.

The committee was particularly impressed with Full's "attempt to bring students to a higher level" in both classes and labs, and noted his great success with involving undergraduates in substantive research. Students universally praise Full's methods: "I've learned," says one, "to deal with problems that arise and think about the next step.

"He has set up a near-perfect environment where not only can he teach us, but where we can teach ourselves."

mary goal of the university is to develop a student's ability to think critically." As one student says, "His class is very challenging. I feel that it has pushed me to think more critically and more scientifically." In his lab courses, he does not lead students through prepared closed-ended experiments; rather, he gives them the tools and they must balance their own results against those in the literature, and defend their results to a group.

Full, recognized as one of the top researchers in the world in animal locomotion, is also frequently called on to talk about science and science education for the public; he has been featured in national magazines and television programs. He received his BA, MA, and PhD from the State University of New York at Buffalo and he joined the faculty in 1986.

The committee was particularly impressed with Full's "attempt to bring students to a higher level" in both classes and labs, and noted his great success with involving undergraduates in substantive research. Students universally praise Full's methods: "I've learned," says one, "to deal with problems that arise and think about the next step.

"He has set up a near-perfect environment where not only can he teach us, but where we can teach ourselves."

"I am relentless," says Rhona Weinstein, professor of psychology, "in setting the highest expectations for what each student can accomplish. I consciously maximize learning and performance opportunities and encourage students to reach beyond their grasp. I have seen too many of the casualties of lowered educational expectations." Her students realize this: "She told us, 'I know I'm pushing you hard, but I want to make sure you will do the best work you possibly can. Don't worry about whether you will succeed. I will make certain you do.'"

Weinstein's teaching and her research meet here in a way that is rare. She is a nationally recognized expert on the dynamics of self-fulfilling prophecies in schooling and

Robert Middlekauff's service to the campus and the larger intellectual community is legendary. He served as provost and dean of the College of Letters and Science, spent five years as the director of the Huntington Library, published a number of significant books on colonial America and was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (among other honors). Middlekauff, Preston Hotchkis Professor of American History, says, "Teaching and learning are activities that take a lot of work. They also return much pleasure, indeed, even joy."

Much of the pleasure for Middlekauff and his students comes from the exchange that takes place in the classroom. "He enjoys noth

Kameshwar Poolla, professor of mechanical engineering, had trouble with a pie when he was a child. "When told that Jack ate 11/17 of a pie for breakfast, 2/3 of a pie for lunch, and a further 2/9 of a pie for dinner, and asked how much pie Jack had consumed in all, I was paralyzed. What kind of pie was this divided so strangely, how did Jack's mom let him eat pie for sustenance, and what awful fate waited those who flunked out of the fourth grade? My mom sensed panic, sat me down, explained fractions and restored my confidence--with clarity and patience."

Poolla uses the story to illustrate what he has learned from former teachers and what he hopes to accomplish in his own teaching.

reform efforts to prevent school failure.

Most recently, Weinstein transformed her undergraduate community psychology course to satisfy the American Cultures requirement, focusing on the "etiology and prevention of mental health/social problems, within a multicultural context." The success of the course can be seen in students' responses: "This course was not only intellectually enlightening and challenging but also had a tremendous impact on my personal life--as a minority in an increasingly pluralistic society and as a future academician in psychology, focusing on minority mental health."

Weinstein received her BA from McGill University and her PhD from Yale and joined the Berkeley faculty in 1973. The committee praised Weinstein's combination of toughness and humanity: "She is someone who goes the extra 10 miles to make students understand the other side."

The committee also praised Weinstein's far reaching influence. She inspired a reshaping of the English curriculum at El Cerrito High School to eliminate tracking.

Lewis Feldman, professor of plant biology, has been regaling students at Berkeley with the wonders of the botanical world since 1978. The coconut palm sits on the stage in his introductory biology class because he believes that "the inherent beauty and originality of the plants themselves will intensify what I say." But the coconut palm doesn't stand alone. "In one lecture on plant anatomy, peanuts, coconuts, celery, fig newtons, hemp and jute, a loofa sponge and a peach pit were all on display," reports a colleague who visited one of Feldman's classes.

Unbridled enthusiasm for the subject is one of the hallmarks of Feldman's teaching. "I delight in plants and draw my students into the botanical kingdom as zealously as a missionary," he says. It is clear that such an attitude has a serious pedagogical effect: "His own enthusiasm inspired me to study harder," is a frequent comment from students.

Feldman also believes that to help students learn the material, a teacher must reach across the distance between professor and students. Feldman visits all his lab sections (even in Bio 1B where there can be more than 25 sections) and by the end of the semester has likely spoken to every student. "He asks provocative questions that help us integrate the lecture and lab," says one student. He learns many students' names, engages students in discussion during lecture, and involves volunteers in demonstrations.

A fellow of the California Academy of Sciences, Feldman's specialty is growth and development and root physiology. He received his BS and MS in botany from UC Davis and his PhD in biology from Harvard. The impact of Feldman's teaching is so great that one of the more enthusiastic students proclaimed, "I am going to name my first child after him."

Kameshwar Poolla, professor of mechanical engineering, had trouble with a pie when he was a child. "When told that Jack ate 11/17 of a pie for breakfast, 2/3 of a pie for lunch, and a further 2/9 of a pie for dinner, and asked how much pie Jack had consumed in all, I was paralyzed. What kind of pie was this divided so strangely, how did Jack's mom let him eat pie for sustenance, and what awful fate waited those who flunked out of the fourth grade? My mom sensed panic, sat me down, explained fractions and restored my confidence--with clarity and patience."

Poolla uses the story to illustrate what he has learned from former teachers and what he hopes to accomplish in his own teaching.

"I try hard," he says, "to bring perspective and clarity to my lectures, in a friendly and personal classroom environment."

A former Presidential Young Investigator whose specialty is robust multivariable control systems and adaptive feedback systems, Poolla joined the Berkeley faculty in 1991. He is recognized as one of the top two or three researchers of his generation in automatic controls.

He is clearly successful at creating the classroom atmosphere he desires: "It is extremely difficult to get lost in lecture," says a student.

Says Poolla, "Often I find students who know many things, but they don't know how these things fit together. So every time I introduce a new topic, I relate it to previous concepts."

A student reports that one lecture "was so elegant that it gave me the chills."

And Poolla says, "When I prepare my lectures, I feel I must work as hard at explaining ideas as the students work at learning them. It is an obligation, but one that is full of pleasure."

"Professor Poolla's class was a stepping stone for me of immense proportions. I think a great deal of the change I saw in myself was due to the problem-solving skills he emphasized in our class," says a student.

The committee agreed that Poolla "inspires creativity and energy and helps the students master difficult material with his elegant presentations and substantive insights."

Robert Middlekauff's service to the campus and the larger intellectual community is legendary. He served as provost and dean of the College of Letters and Science, spent five years as the director of the Huntington Library, published a number of significant books on colonial America and was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (among other honors). Middlekauff, Preston Hotchkis Professor of American History, says, "Teaching and learning are activities that take a lot of work. They also return much pleasure, indeed, even joy."

Much of the pleasure for Middlekauff and his students comes from the exchange that takes place in the classroom. "He enjoys nothing more than dissent and disagreement, and his ability to encourage students to voice their doubts and criticisms in a non-threatening atmosphere is unmatched," says one of his students. Middlekauff says, "I try to present an argument in each lecture in a way that leaves important questions unresolved. I do not conceal my own conclusions, but I do attempt to not close off different understandings. Quite often undergraduate perspectives will be fresh and important." A student concurs: "I remember feeling in these seminars as if I was finding my voice as a scholar."

"I hope," says Middlekauff, "that students' imaginations will be stretched and their natural curiosity nourished, that they will grow intellectually and morally."

The committee found that Middlekauff's idea that "Good teaching liberates students from their teachers, after all," was strongly present in all of his teaching. "He is inspirational," said one committee member. "A great scholar, teacher and researcher." The committee noted in particular one student's comment: "Perhaps the greatest joy of this class was the ways in which it extended beyond the classroom, affecting my beliefs, world view and life."


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