Faculty Advisors

Connect with faculty advisors who have successfully integrated the Mastering system into their course. Using the proven effectiveness of peer-to-peer advising, Faculty Advisors are available to relate success stories, share best practices, and provide tips for successfully integrating Mastering into your curriculum.

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  Lourdes Norman-McKay
  Florida State College at Jacksonville
  Jacksonville, FL

  Courses Taught:Anatomy & Physiology; Microbiology
  Course Format: Hybrid
  "The Mastering platform helps my students come to class better prepared, which facilitates a richer lab experience and promotes just-in-time teaching. Since implementing Mastering, I have seen a statistically significant shift in C and D grades to B and C grades. The number of A's and F's were not significantly impacted suggesting the borderline students benefit the most from this platform. In addition to helping students, Mastering helps me by tracking learning outcomes and providing diagnostics. These pedagogical benefits were realized with less grading and overall time commitment as compared to using traditional homework assignments."
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  William Hanna
  Massasoit Community College
  Brockton, MA

  Courses Taught:Anatomy & Physiology I & II
  Course Format: Traditional; Hybrid
  "I've found Mastering to be a great replacement for my paper assignments. I'm especially happy that I've been able to incorporate hints into questions that have historically given my students a hard time. I've also found that it helps my students to be more responsible about meeting deadlines and more technologically literate."
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  Abigail Goosie
  Walters State Community College
  Morristown, TN

  Courses Taught:Anatomy & Physiology I & II
  Course Format: Traditional
  "Mastering has enabled me to provide an organized and efficient way to enhance student engagement without requiring extra time out of my schedule. I have seen increases in student scores, with better student involvement and understanding during class lectures - even chapters later when concepts reappear. Mastering activities encompass the diverse learning styles we all encounter in the classroom so that all students benefit."
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  Terry Austin
  Temple College
  Temple, TX

  Courses Taught:Anatomy & Physiology I & II; Microbiology
  Course Format: Traditional; Hybrid; Fully Online
  "Mastering has actually managed to get myself and my students excited about homework! I've found that online assignments help me focus my lecture time on topics where students need help. Most startling was the day my students went from grumbling about homework to e-mailing reminders to me to make their homework available before class! Since starting Mastering a few years ago, I've recently made the leap to offering fully online A&P with Mastering being a major provider of lab materials. I am currently developing a hybrid version of Microbiology with online lectures, and traditional lab."
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  Melissa Greene
  Northwest Mississippi Community College
  Senatobia, MS

  Courses Taught:Anatomy & Physiology I & II; Survey of A&P; Majors Biology I & II and Non-majors Biology I & II
  Course Format: Traditional; Online
  "MasteringBiology helps my students succeed in class. Knowing that they are receiving a grade for completing the material, and that at least half of their test material will come from Mastering, has really motivated my students to do their homework and read their textbook. I have definitely seen increased test scores and increased overall grades since I started using Mastering. Mastering allows me to reach students with all types of learning styles and gives the students time to practice the information they are learning in the classroom outside of class. The tutorials and videos help reinforce difficult topics that students tend to struggle with on a regular basis. The online students love the BioFlix videos, animations, and activities that allow them to see, hear, and actively engage in the material even though they are not attending traditional lectures. I have received many positive comments from my students, and they believe Mastering is helping them understand and enjoy biology."
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  Rodney Holmes
  Waubonsee Community College
  Chicago, IL

  Courses Taught:Anatomy & Physiology I and II
  Course Format: Traditional
  "Perhaps the most surprising aspect of MasteringA&P is how much the students like it. When there were only 40 assignments per semester, students were clamoring for more! Judging from conversations and course evaluations, they seem to be quite happy with 60 homework assignments and online quizzes counting for 20% of the course grade. Having meticulously tracked exam grades, overall grades, and successful completion since Mastering was first launched, I can document almost a half letter grade improvement and a solid 15-20% improvement in completion with a C or better in both A&P I and II."
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  John Cummings
  Clemson University
  Clemson, SC

  Courses Taught:Human Anatomy & Physiology I & II
  Course Format: Traditional
  "I offer Mastering homework assignments to get the students to process the lecture material soon after it is presented in class. Topics supported through Mastering assignments show an 8% higher overall test average than unsupported topics. Thus, even though the homeworks themselves have little impact on final course grades, completion of the assignments does."
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  David Babb
  West Hills College Lemoore
  Lemoore, CA

  Courses Taught:Human Anatomy; Human Physiology
  Course Format: Traditional; Fully Online
  "I use Mastering assignments to help students keep up with the course reading and to know what types of questions to expect on unit exams. I have also started using Mastering to easily assess course-level Student Learning Outcomes and generate assessment reports. When compared with other systems, I have found Mastering easy to use and very reliable."
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  Robert Maynard
  Pearl River Community College
  Poplarville, MS

  Courses Taught:Anatomy & Physiology I & II; Majors Biology I; Non-majors Biology I
  Course Format: Traditional; Fully online
  "Mastering helps me address a variety of learning styles through videos and animations, and helps give the students instant feedback and guidance. It takes misconceptions and wrong answers and turns them into learning opportunities. Students who use Mastering as it's intended “get it” much easier than those who don't."
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  Jake Dechant
  University of Pittsburgh
  Pittsburgh, PA

  Courses Taught:Anatomy & Physiology I & II; Non-majors Biology
  Course Format: Traditional; Fully Online
  "I particularly like Mastering for my large traditional lecture course. It allows me to really see what the students are getting and where they still need help."
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  Karen Dougherty
  Hopkinsville Community College
  Hopkinsville, KY

  Courses Taught:Human Anatomy & Physiology I & II
  Course Format: Traditional (accelerated 8-week format)
  "MasteringA&P has helped my students to realize that our course is indeed an achievable challenge. Students especially appreciate the visuals and coaching items, as well as access to PAL3.0. With PhysioEx 9.0, we are able to simulate experiments that we would not otherwise have the time or equipment to complete. Classroom discussions are much livelier and more meaningful since implementing Mastering."