{"id":497452,"date":"2021-10-26T09:58:18","date_gmt":"2021-10-26T13:58:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/?p=497452"},"modified":"2024-09-08T10:44:25","modified_gmt":"2024-09-08T14:44:25","slug":"will-bridges-innovation-and-student-involvement-as-teaching-tools-497452","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rochester.edu\/newscenter\/will-bridges-innovation-and-student-involvement-as-teaching-tools-497452\/","title":{"rendered":"Will Bridges: Innovation and student involvement as teaching tools"},"content":{"rendered":"

The fourth-generation teacher is always searching for the ‘transformative potential of education’ in classes.<\/h2>\n
\n

\"Will<\/p>\n

What they\u2019re saying<\/h2>\n

\u201cWill is a deep thinker on pedagogical challenges facing all of us who teach in the humanities, namely, how to best articulate and demonstrate the value of humanistic inquiry. His article \u2018The Tragedy before the Blood Commons: Araki Tetsur\u014d, the Crisis in the Humanity, and Animated Education\u2019 is a creative and provocative refutation in the context of Japanese literature and anime of the cultural narrative of worthless humanities majors. The humanities need such eloquent defenders like Will to remind those who have forgotten that the humanistic arts were the first and best ways of exploring and understanding the human experience.\u201d
\n\u2014John Givens, chair, Department of Modern Languages and Cultures<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cThe two classes I took with Professor Bridges were vastly different in size, but in both cases he created an open discussion while masterfully guiding us towards deeper insights and revelations. This is a hallmark of his teaching style. The \u2018point\u2019 is never forced upon the class, which keeps participation open to all ideas, however varied they may be.\u201d
\n\u2014Alex Velberg \u201921<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cClass was always diverse. We often worked and discussed in small groups, we shared our ideas on online discussion threads to encourage discussion and, as Prof. Bridges said, to encourage those who might not want to speak in class to have another channel to interact and discuss. In each class I took with Prof. Bridges, I knew everyone\u2019s name because everyone wanted to participate, and he would always call us by name.\u201d
\n\u2014Cherish Blackman \u201918 <\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

As a fourth-generation teacher, Will Bridges jokes that the profession is something his family \u201cjust can\u2019t shake.\u201d But he\u2019s serious about its impact.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe transformative potential of education is one of the reasons I pursued this career,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

An associate professor in the Department of Modern Languages and Cultures<\/a>, Bridges teaches modern and contemporary Japanese literature and culture, comparative literature and literary theory, and African American studies. In his four years at University of Rochester<\/a>, he has honed his craft with vigor, always searching for innovative ways to reach students. It\u2019s a major reason why he\u2019s a recipient of this year\u2019s Goergen Award for Excellence in Undergraduate Teaching<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI see my job as expanding that sense of what can possibly be,\u201d he says. \u201cA professor is just an intellectual tool, one to sharpen and polish your mind. It\u2019s up to students to determine how best to use that tool regarding their personal, professional, and societal goals.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bridges\u2019 teaching is rooted in three principles:<\/p>\n