I firmly believe that good teaching is achieved through planning, demonstration, involvement, inspiration, and communication. Needless to say, the instructor's motivation, enthusiasm, and devotion are always the preconditions to make good teaching possible.

First of all, the instructor has to have a goal for each class he or she teaches: where to lead the students, how much they need to know, what is the take-home-message. It is impossible to get somewhere if you don't know where you are going. Teaching requires careful planning, lots of it and at every instructional level. Course material needs to be tailored to the most extent to meet individual expectations. As the ancient Chinese proverb says, "Tell me and I'll forget; show me and I may remember; involve me and I'll understand", involvement and inspiration have proved to be an effective way to explore and expand students' potential in understanding and creating. All the above is based on effective communication between the instructor and the students. To be able to stay tuned to students' reactions, feedbacks, and varying needs is crucial for achieving effective teaching.

There are a million little ways to make learning a more enjoyable experience: refreshing jokes, question breaks, animated slides, video demonstrations, team competitions, etc., with which I have been able to encourage participation, teamwork, and creative thinking in labs. Learning can also be more individualized when teachers work closer with students. Through classroom and email interactions, I constantly adjust my instructional levels to avoid overwhelming or underwhelming students. I have also been giving review sessions to offer elaborations/clarifications and to better understand individual needs, concerns, and interests.

Modern technology helps promote teaching efficiency to a great extent and teachers are no longer limited to the chalkboard. I have been fostering discussions and answering questions online without going to the other side of the world. Short videos and animated PowerPoint slides are extremely helpful in explaining dynamic processes such as cation exchange reactions in soils. Teaching applied sciences such as turfgrass and soil often requires a good understanding of students' background because students often differ greatly in prerequisite knowledge, industry experience, and career expectations. An online survey prior to the beginning of the course can well serve this purpose and thus help the instructor tailor the course material.

Internet technology has made remote education possible and enabled worldwide accessibility of instructional resources. However, without classroom interaction, web-based learning resources need to be well designed to maximize their educational impact. In an attempt to improve the effectiveness of turfgrass instructional modules, Dr. A. J. Turgeon and I developed a loop-imbedded module which creates a more student-centered learning environment by providing loops students can either enter or bypass. From this experience, I learned that effectiveness, efficiency, and flexibility can be achieved simultaneously with a well-designed instructional module to better serve a broad student population.

Technological advances have revolutionized the way we communicate. Emails, blogs, discussion boards, electronic conferences are handy technologies that not only foster timely communication but also takes discussion to a greater depth. The instructor and the students, staying in their respective locations, are able to carry out a class, interact with questions and discussions, and even write an essay together. When I am away from the campus, I find no difficulty conducting virtual office hours using emails and discussion boards.

However, it is always important to keep the balance. Video demonstrations can never replace hands-on lab experiences. PowerPoint slides do not translate to no preparation before class. Instead, planning and preparation are crucial for the multi-media teaching to be truly advantageous. Meanwhile, the instructor has to stay synchronized with the newest happenings in the field to keep students updated.

I take great joy in teaching and will continue to contribute to quality teaching in turfgrass and related sciences.