Olga Limnios
Assistant Instructional Professor
Brief Biography:
Olga Limnios is an Assistant Instructional Professor of English at Providence College, RI. She is the author of Presented Discourse in Popular Science, The Language of Popular Science, and an editor of Lab Lit. Limnios' research interests are in scientific discourse analysis, gender linguistics, and inclusive pedagogy.
Area(s) of Expertise:
Scientific discourse analysis
Teaching Philosophy:
When I was an undergraduate, I liked to take not only written notes on lectures but also mental notes on how my professors delivered those lectures, what was effective, and how they made the material memorable. I was consciously preparing myself for a career as an educator. And the most important lesson from those notes was that the best educators never forgot what it was like to be students. They were authoritative yet kind, rigorous and understanding, they expressed their own personalities and recognized and celebrated the individualities of their students. I wanted to be like them. And for the first few years as a professor, that’s what I tried to do. I didn’t fail, but I was emulating rather then being. With more experience, I gained confidence to become an educator in my own right, and here is my pedagogical self-portrait:
In broad strokes, it is curiosity coupled with flexibility. Being curious, I believe, is not an act of spontaneity but a carefully fostered condition. Asking questions first requires thinking, and thinking demands slowing down. That is why learning to tolerate uncomfortable pauses in class discussions was one of the most valuable things I have done. Listening to oneself, trusting one’s own knowledge, and being comfortable enough to form and ask questions is what I strive to teach. Since coming to Providence College, I have also started to use the practice of contemplation as a way to encourage curiosity. I see contemplation as a metacognitive tool that allows students to self-assess. For example, a contemplative portfolio in my writing courses guides students in selecting and revising assignments in such a way that they become aware of the choices they made, can articulate explanations for those choices, and feel confident offering alternatives. This practice promotes not only ownership of knowledge but also creates trust in one’s abilities. It helps us see argument as a conversation rather than as a conflict. Conversation is an excellent path to curiosity and translates into lectures where I together with the students look for answers in a given text, or class sessions where we dispute an interpretation offered by a scholar. While I never seek to subvert authority of reputable practitioners, I do often bring up historical interpretations of texts alongside modern analyses in order to highlight influences cultural and social environments can exert. And, perhaps, more importantly, to demonstrate the fluidity of intellectual traditions. It is safe to change your mind in my classroom, and it is encouraged to explore why it happened.
Flexibility follows curiosity and is a crucial trait of a competent educator. I fully realize that my students come from different backgrounds and have different learning abilities and opportunities. While I adhere to the general guidelines of the curriculum, I do not fail to recognize where an individual approach will work better and will promote inclusivity. Universal Learning Design shapes the way I handle day-to-day interactions with students: from multiple forms of assessment to a combination of lecture and student-centered activities. I am always willing to work with my students, and I let them know that if they want to succeed, there is always a way. Flexibility for an educator is also being vulnerable and relinquishing the position of power. It is not only having to say out loud, “I don’t know,” but also accepting “I don’t know” as an answer from a student without judging. It is scrambling an assignment that worked well for years. It is being open to learning, to being a student, and to remembering without necessarily recreating.
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