Know Your Profs is an ongoing series of profiles on the instructors at Camosun College. Every issue we ask a different instructor at Camosun the same 10 questions in an attempt to get to know them a little better.
Do you have an instructor whom you want to see interviewed in the paper? Maybe you want to know more about one of your teachers, but you’re too busy, or shy, to ask? Email editor@nexusnewspaper.com and we’ll add your instructor to our list of teachers to talk to.
This issue, we talked to Camosun Mathematics and Statistics instructor Bree Wilton about braving a snowstorm, maintaining the in-class experience at post-secondary, and raising a two-year-old dictator.
1. What do you teach and how long have you been at Camosun?
I’ve taught Math and Stats for six years.
2. What do you personally get out of teaching?
Interacting personally with students, learning their stories, and helping them achieve their goals is very important to me. It’s exciting to see a student have an “a-ha!” moment. I hope I can inspire students with my enthusiasm for math and stats.
3. What’s one thing you wish your students knew about you?
There’s not much they don’t know—I’m a bit of an over-sharer.
4. What’s one thing you wish they didn’t know about you?
That my memory is horrible. I map out my courses prior to the beginning of term, but after that I lose all retention of test dates, homework dates… I hope nobody reads this and uses it to their advantage.
5. What’s the best thing that’s happened to you as a teacher here?
Besides all the amazing interactions that I’ve had with students, it would probably be becoming continued faculty. No more term work and uncertainty.
6. What’s the worst thing that’s happened to you as a teacher here?
Making my way here through a snowstorm for an 8:30 am class with only five students showing up to class and then having the college close half an hour later. Not much to complain about; mostly, my job rocks.
7. What do you see in the future of post-secondary education?
I see online courses, textbooks, and homework assignments becoming more and more prevalent. I hope we can move in this direction while still maintaining the personal experience that comes with getting to know your fellow students and/or professor. I think in-person classroom interaction is such a meaningful part of learning; I would be disappointed if that could not be maintained on some level.
8. What do you do to relax on the weekends?
I like to have dinner parties with friends, drink wine, take my daughter to the pool, and take my dog to Island View Beach. I used to read books on weekends, but my two-year-old won’t allow that anymore. We call her “The Dictator.”
9. What is your favourite meal?
It’s a tie between my two favourites: pizza and pho. I could eat these two items any time of any day.
10. What’s your biggest pet peeve?
Chatting in class. I always tell my students this at the beginning of term and have a very low tolerance for chatters. Students who are there to learn deserve a quiet and respectful classroom setting.