Teaching Portfolio:  H. Chad Lane

Teaching and Education-related Experience


  1. Teaching positions
  2. Teaching-related service
  3. Education-related positions

Teaching positions: Courses taught during these appointments:
  • CS0401 - Intermediate Programming in C++, University of Pittsburgh
    • this is the rigorous introductory course for cs majors at Pitt, roughly 40 students per section
    • taught two sections of 401 in the summer of 2001
    • responsible for creating syllabus, exams, quizzes, lectures, and assignments
    • supervised 4 TAs and guided their recitations and grading
    • graded and issued final grades for the course
  • CS302 - Introduction to Algebraic Language Programming (in C++), University of Wisconsin-Madison
    • introductory course for majors (and engineers), roughly 20 students per section
    • taught this course a total of 8 times while a graduate student at UW-Madison
    • same responsibilities as above
  • CS0007 - Introduction to Computer Programming (Java), University of Pittsburgh
    • a gentle introduction to cs for non-majors and prospective majors, enrollment ranges between 25 to 45.
    • taught a total of 9 times and use it in conjuction with my dissertation research.
    • same responsibilities as above
    • helped redesign this course when it transitioned from Pascal to Java by evaluating textbooks, redesigning the syllabus, and producing documentation for beginning Java programmers
  • Remedial College Algebra, Truman State University
    • as part of an undergraduate teaching program, I taught a pass/fail Algebra class for incoming students with deficiencies in math
    • the experience profoundly affected me and confirmed my desire to pursue a career in teaching
  • Basic Spreadsheets, Database, and Presentation Classes, Duff's Business Institute
    • During a research-only phase of my graduate career, I found I myself missing the classroom and accepted this job teaching evening classes to part-time students at Duff's
    • This exposed me to a side of teaching that I never had seen before - a very real-world and practical side with people who struggled with the most basic of tasks.  When these students succeeded, I felt a tremendous sense of happiness for them.

Teaching-related service:

  • Invited Speaker - TA Orientation, Dept. of Computer Science, University of Pittsburgh, 1998 & 2003.
    • I gave talks on the importance of teaching for graduate students and presented examples of my own teaching that encourage creativity and fun in the classroom.  I also broke the audience into groups and asked them to react to various situations (derived from my experiences) and brainstorm for creative solutions. [Slides from talk]
  • Undergraduate Programs Committee, Dept. of Computer Science, University of Pittsburgh, 1998-2000.
    • As part of this committee, I represented graduate students and participated in discussions of the undergraduate curriculum, student advising, and other issues relating to undergraduate education. 
    • I produced documentation defining the precise roles and responsibilities of TAs in certain undergraduate courses.
  • Java Seminar Instructor, Learning Research and Development Center, University of Pittsburgh, fall 1999.
    • At the request of several psychology graduate students, I voluntarily taught a semester-long, hands-on Java seminar open to anyone.  We generally studied examples, wrote programs, and problem solved together each week.
  • Guest Lecturer, Dept of Computer Science, University of Pittsburgh, 2000-2001.
    • I filled in on several occasions in the undergraduate AI course by giving lectures on Prolog and Lisp.

Education-related Experience:

  • Graduate Research Assistant, University of Pittsburgh, 1999 - current.
    • I am a member of CIRCLE, the Center for Interdisciplinary Research on Constructive Learning Environments.  The aim of the group is to study human tutoring and build intelligent tutoring systems that are highly interactive and cause deep learning in students. 
    • My dissertation work was motivated directly from my experiences with students.  I have built a dialogue-based intelligent tutoring system that helps students in the earliest phases of programming:  problem understanding and planning.  Students who participate in my research give me a rare glimpse into the inner-workings of the minds of novice programmers.  This has, I believe, helped me to improve tremendously as a teacher because it has helped reveal their frustrations and difficulties with programming.
    • Relevant links:  Research Summary  |  Publications
  • Director, Joseph Baldwin Academy, Truman State University, summers of 1992-1998.
    • JBA is a summer academic camp for students ages 12 through 14.  Students live on campus with staff and take a college-level course (about 7 hours/day).  Each summer there are two, three-week sessions, with about 300 students from across the U.S. attending across both sessions.
    • During my seven years with JBA, I was involved in the following ways:
      • Director, 1996 - 1998: I oversaw the day-to-day operation of the academy, including interaction with parents, student discipline, staff interviewing and hiring, training, and support, as well as communication with JBA faculty and general university staff.
      • Activities Director, 1995:  coordinated all out-of-class activities for students.
      • Preceptor, 1992-1994:  involved teaching, tutoring, grading, and other in- and out-of- classroom activities.
  • Grader/Tutor, Division of Math & Computer Science, Truman State University, Kirksville, MO, 1992-1995.
    • I was an undergraduate TA for several different computer science courses.

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