Natural resources science teaching professor Chris Floyd is among the adventurous, devoted, and innovative faculty here at URI who provide immersive experiences to their students both inside and outside the classroom. Having taken three courses with Dr. Floyd consecutively – NRS 223 Conservation Biology, NRS 407 Endangered Species Conservation, and NRS 304 Field Ornithology – I was thrilled about the opportunity to interview him for this piece and to learn more about his teaching philosophy and experiences teaching in conservation-based sciences. Speaking from my own experience as a student in his courses, I thoroughly enjoyed every class I participated in that was taught by Dr. Floyd. He integrates real-world conservation problems, hands-on learning, and practical science communication skills into his classes, giving students a valuable experience in lectures, labs, and field work.
Below are Dr. Floyd’s responses, in which he discusses his years of research in wildlife biology and conservation, teaching several of Dr. Paton’s courses, and incorporating active learning in every class he teaches.
-Yvonne Wingard, CELS Communications Fellow
Q. How would you describe your teaching philosophy/pedagogy?
A. Case studies, group projects, field trips, writing activities, and discussions are major elements of my classes. Students learn best by doing activities that encourage them to go beyond merely trying to absorb facts and comprehend concepts or processes. My teaching philosophy is that students gain minimal learning by passively listening to me talk. I have the students carry out activities that lead to them building their own knowledge of the topics. The discovery process is a good learning vehicle, and so I try to build discovery into multiple elements of my courses.
Describe one of your most memorable teaching experiences.
My most rewarding teaching experiences come from lab or field activities that went as planned, especially when the students engaged in a learning process that was fun and rewarding to them.
What has been the most surprising or unexpected part of teaching?
As a professor the learning curve has never leveled off, and I always feel the need to substantially revise the content and activities in my classes every year. The science and body of understanding underlying the course material continually progress, as do the expectations of academia and the students. I am never entirely content with my classes, and I make revisions and try new things whenever I have the opportunity.
Who was the most inspiring teacher in your life and why?
Dr. Doug Mock at the University of Oklahoma. He was the professor of the ornithology and animal behavior classes I took there as a biology major. It was in Doug’s classes that I came to understand evolution beyond a superficial level and became fascinated with it. Although it was around 35 years ago, I distinctly remember my learning experiences in Doug’s classes, and I have always strived to make my classes similarly memorable.
How do you incorporate hands-on learning into your courses?
I incorporate science-based activities or projects in all my classes. Even in my NRS 305 (principles of wildlife management) class, which has only a lecture section, students carry out sampling activities in and outside the classroom. For example, every year I have the students form groups of 2-3 and carry out a transect-based population survey of the gray squirrels on campus, which involves four separate rounds of transect walks throughout the semester. The field trips and lab activities in my vertebrate biology, ornithology, and herpetology classes are focused on finding, identifying and in some cases conducting behavioral observations on species in their wild habitats.
How has your research influenced your teaching?
My years of field research have given me the training needed to develop field-based scientific projects and activities that students can carry out successfully. In field biology, you have little control of the variables you are trying to measure, and there is a lot of natural variation that can thwart your ability to measure the effect of the factors in which you are interested. But that natural variation also provides excellent opportunities for student projects. Also, my years of writing proposals and papers and presenting my work at conferences have given me the background needed to craft activities providing students with the experience they need in scientific communication. But equally important is an understanding of what I can reasonably expect in terms of the students’ work, especially given how diverse our students are in their backgrounds and experience.
What has been the most challenging part of teaching?
Most of my classes have several field trips, which require logistical preparation such as reserving vans and loading up the associated gear into them. Even after 30 years of driving vans on field trips, they still make me nervous, as I am acutely aware that I am responsible for the safety of my passengers. Also, it is often difficult or complicated to get to and from the field trip locations and accomplish the associated activities in a timely manner.
Can you speak a bit about the working relationship you and Dr. Paton have?
Dr. Paton was an amazing colleague and mentor as well as an excellent chair of our department. During the school year, he and I communicated almost daily on topics related to classes, advising, and curricula. Since his retirement, I have occasionally asked him questions about various topics such as the optimal locations for field trips and population sampling.
Which of Dr. Paton’s classes did you take over after his retirement, and why were you selected to teach them?
Last fall I taught ornithology, and this spring I am teaching herpetology, both of which were taught by Dr. Paton in previous years. His shoes are big ones to fill, as he was a well-known and much-loved professor in those classes; and he has decades of experience conducting research in the fields of ornithology and herpetology. I volunteered to teach these courses, which are a natural fit given my personal interests and professional background. I taught ornithology at the UW-Eau Claire (and am a long-time birder), studied habitat selection by red-naped sapsuckers in Colorado, and have taught various courses in vertebrate biology over the years.
Why do you think it’s important to teach about conservation biology/ecology?
The topics of conservation biology and ecology are excellent vehicles for learning and gaining experience in scientific inquiry and communication. Also, virtually all of our students in the WCB [Wildlife and Conservation Biology] major care about conservation, and for many it is the main thing that drew them to the major.