How many Asians have you seen today?
This question is a trap. Categories like race, gender, and age are meant to divide and define. Categories help us organize the world and can even help answer policy-related questions. But categories are never the whole picture. Everything is on a distribution. Everyone is different.
Much of my Ph.D. has focused on discovering the impact of minimum wages on employment. I’ve found that minimum wages impact low-wage areas more than high-wage areas. They also impact cities more during seasons of low employment. Any treatment effect has heterogenous impact – the effect depends on the recipient.
When a student asks a question, I try to find the reason for the question. This discovery process requires listening and empathy. It may be impossible to understand a room full of students, but I can at least try to understand their mindsets in the moment. My lesson plans are tailored this way – illustrative repetition. When one example isn’t enough, I’ll give a different one. When one explanation isn’t enough, I’ll give another one.
Everyone has a lot going on. As we get older, we can only hope to cope better. Undergraduates are particularly vulnerable – many are away from home dealing with work, relationships, and money for the first time. I need to see things from their point of view.
I began living on my own at age thirteen when my father got sick, and my mother had to go back to Hong Kong to care for him. I worked at Jamba Juice, self-medicated to remove acne, and tried to be “normal.” Now I know there is no “normal,” there is only different. Everyone needs time to figure it out.
This question is a trap. Categories like race, gender, and age are meant to divide and define. Categories help us organize the world and can even help answer policy-related questions. But categories are never the whole picture. Everything is on a distribution. Everyone is different.
Much of my Ph.D. has focused on discovering the impact of minimum wages on employment. I’ve found that minimum wages impact low-wage areas more than high-wage areas. They also impact cities more during seasons of low employment. Any treatment effect has heterogenous impact – the effect depends on the recipient.
When a student asks a question, I try to find the reason for the question. This discovery process requires listening and empathy. It may be impossible to understand a room full of students, but I can at least try to understand their mindsets in the moment. My lesson plans are tailored this way – illustrative repetition. When one example isn’t enough, I’ll give a different one. When one explanation isn’t enough, I’ll give another one.
Everyone has a lot going on. As we get older, we can only hope to cope better. Undergraduates are particularly vulnerable – many are away from home dealing with work, relationships, and money for the first time. I need to see things from their point of view.
I began living on my own at age thirteen when my father got sick, and my mother had to go back to Hong Kong to care for him. I worked at Jamba Juice, self-medicated to remove acne, and tried to be “normal.” Now I know there is no “normal,” there is only different. Everyone needs time to figure it out.
