Courses Taught
Introductory Psychology
Research Design & Statistics
Lifespan Development
Childhood & Adolescence
Human Growth & Development for All Grades Educators
Child Development for Elementary Educators
Adolescent Development for Secondary Educators
Adult Development
Adulthood & Aging
Learning & Assessment for Early Childhood/Elementary Educators
Courses Served as Teaching Assistant
Child Psychology
Child Development (Graduate Level)
Lifespan Development (Graduate Level)
Research Design (Graduate Level)
Introductory Statistics (Graduate Level)
Brief Teaching Philosophy
Dr. Thomas believes that education aids learners in uncovering and generating knowledge useful for their personal lives, their careers, their communities, their countries, and the world, especially as they strive to understand and balance multiple perspectives, which hones critical and creativity. Additionally, Dr. Thomas believes learners—including instructors and researchers—experience development as driven by dynamic, bidirectional interactions between personal and contextual factors, as assumed by one line of study in human development.
To translate these beliefs into action in the classroom, Dr. Thomas aims to continually recognize the multiplicity of complex influences that brings each student to the classroom and how these might impact the ways they engage with the content, its delivery, and other people. Dr. Thomas' view of students as adults with complex, diverse ways of being in the world necessitates the rejection of a one-size-fits-all approach to instruction and is the primary guideline by which she design her courses and delivers content. Dr. Thomas also adheres to several other specific instructional philosophies intended to both draw from and catalyze a complex, strengths-driven view of students, including autonomy support, flexibility, active engagement, and diverse representation.
Dr. Thomas believes that education aids learners in uncovering and generating knowledge useful for their personal lives, their careers, their communities, their countries, and the world, especially as they strive to understand and balance multiple perspectives, which hones critical and creativity. Additionally, Dr. Thomas believes learners—including instructors and researchers—experience development as driven by dynamic, bidirectional interactions between personal and contextual factors, as assumed by one line of study in human development.
To translate these beliefs into action in the classroom, Dr. Thomas aims to continually recognize the multiplicity of complex influences that brings each student to the classroom and how these might impact the ways they engage with the content, its delivery, and other people. Dr. Thomas' view of students as adults with complex, diverse ways of being in the world necessitates the rejection of a one-size-fits-all approach to instruction and is the primary guideline by which she design her courses and delivers content. Dr. Thomas also adheres to several other specific instructional philosophies intended to both draw from and catalyze a complex, strengths-driven view of students, including autonomy support, flexibility, active engagement, and diverse representation.