teaching

With students near Arthur’s Seat

Approach

I am particularly interested in combining teaching and research in my ongoing practice. I take experiential approaches very seriously. I like to experiment. I have conducted classes in old train tunnels, in parking garages, in cemeteries, on mountaintops, with students blindfolded, I have taken classes to protests, and had plants as lesson ‘co-teachers’, —to sensitize students to different perceptual or conceptual points— recognising that lesson form and content are deeply interconnected. I set scenarios, play tricks, and create mystery in the classroom, allow spaces for silence and contemplation, challenge hierarchies and defy expectations. I thrive in exploring the vast and difficult, but ever exciting, domain that lies between top-down didacticism and laissez-faire constructivism. I also enjoy guiding students through meaningful and transformational assessments, such as action research (in the Environmental Citizenship course I teach) or practitioner inquiry (in my Environmental Philosophy class) that activate students in real life problem solving on various sustainability issues. What makes these diverse approaches ‘experiential’ is the way in which each go beyond ‘propositional knowledge’, whether it be a sensory, a contextual, or a practical broadening out, and how I help students make sense of and reflect upon their evolving experiences. My innovative approaches have led to several Teaching Award nominations and consistently high ratings on Ratemyprofessors.com

Current and Previous Courses

Science Education:

  • Biology Curriculum and Pedagogy
  • General Science Curriculum and Pedagogy

Environmental and Sustainability Education:

Philosophy of Education:

Research Methods:

Testimonials

Here are some excerpts from different students who have nominated me for recent EUSA teaching awards:

****

Ramsey has not only been one of the most enthusiastic teachers I have had the privilege to work with but he shows a level of caring that is sadly lacking in education today. As a student, I can truly tell that he not only cares for my education, my ideas, and my future, but he also genuinely cares about me as an individual. 

Ramsey also brings an astounding ability to challenge ideas and opinions that allows us to not only analyse what we think critically but reminds us to question what we think so that we do not become complacent educators. He exemplifies what, in my opinion, needs to be more present in teachers today. That is a caring attitude towards the student personally and academically!

****

Ramsey is the most engaged and competent educator I have experienced. He deserves to have his efforts recognised as an example to all educators of what a true teacher is.

Ramsey truly cares about his students and goes far beyond his duty to help every student do their best.

****

All of the teachers from “Outdoor Education” are great and Ramsey is a teacher I’ll never forget. His knowledge and expertise were impressive and his ways of teaching innovating, surprising and challenging. He is looking to learn from his student as much as he is sharing his knowledge with us. I always felt comfortable talking with him about any subject and always knew I could ask for his support if needed. His feedback are really helpful and encouraging. He works a lot to give us amazing courses and  support.

****

The one thing that absolutely stands out about Ramsey is his approach-ability. His constant support and availability from the dissertation topic conception days till the submission was paramount in my dissertation journey. Throughout the journey he ensured that I grew academically, professionally and personally, and that the dissertation was not another tick in the box to get a MSc degree. Towards the end of the process, I just wanted it to be done and over with, and told him about having lost the motivation. His question to me was, “Are you not growing through the process anymore?”. Further, he invested a significant amount of time in giving feedback on chapters that were submitted and helping out wherever I got stuck. Dissertation research and writing has been a highly enriching experience for me and it wouldn’t have been so if I hadn’t had Ramsey as the one to guide and support me, every step of the way.

****

Ramsey has been an outstanding teacher on the Outdoor Education and Outdoor Environmental and Sustainability Education programmes. On residential courses he has provided thought providing topics for discussion which he facilitates well supporting everyone to participate while keeping the discussions on topic and using the outdoor environment to inform our thinking. In lectures he has used a mixture of simple PowerPoint slides that capture the often complex philosophical issues he is exploring, practical activities which push us to consider our relationship to these issues and community based experiences outside the university to offer truely dynamic and engaging classes. Ramsey offers helpful feedback and makes himself available for students to discuss any ideas or issues they are having. During courses he has played a crucial role in bringing the students together to support each other in thier learning, even helping to start up study groups of students who are interested in similar study areas. All of which have created a very supportive learning community within the cohort. The courses he teaches are mostly about social responsibility, sustainability and global issues so these topics are the curriculum he teaches and he is clearly very passionate about it. Ramsey challenges us to think deeply about our relationship with these issues and has even set an assessment essay which involved reflecting on action we were to take to tackle a local issue. Ramsey has taught research and study skills courses and even here he makes the topic relivant to these bigger issues.

Ramsey has been an absolutely inspirational teacher. He has supported students to publish their work and provided endless encouragement, support and challenges without which none of the students would have thought so deeply.

****

Inside and outside of the classroom, Ramsey has taught me to access ways of seeing and critical thought that has changed the course of my Masters degree, and my life. His depth of knowledge about epistemology, pedagogy, and the environment is unrivaled, in my own experience. Ramsey became a mentor to almost every student in my cohort, opening his office door to us for informal yet enlightened and rigorous discussion whenever. Indeed, he makes himself available for feedback and support more than any other professor I’ve ever had. He constructively connects theory to practice through his love of learning, and emboldens us all to follow our own passions as zealously as he does. I am submitting this nomination because Ramsey has become a major reason for the focus I’ve put into this postgraduate program (Outdoor Environmental and Sustainability Education), as well as the knowledge and joy I’ve derived from it. The course, my cohort, and my own self as a postgraduate student would be sorely worse off without him.

****

Ramsey is very approachable, and he truly cares about each of his students’ success. He always has time for someone who needs to talk through an assignment (even if it is not for one of his classes), and he will do as much as he can to help. In the classroom, Ramsey has teaching methods that engage the entire class, and he creates a community that encourages everyone to contribute and engage in the learning. Throughout the year, students have been able to work with Ramsey, and it has become obvious that he is invaluable to this program. I know I can count on Ramsey to motivate, inspire, and inform me at all times. He is very knowledgable, and the amount he does for everyone astounds me. My masters experience would not be the same if Ramsey were not here, and I am very thankful for all of his support this year. He deserves this award!

****

Ramsey has been a wonderful member of the OESE/OE programme team.  He had a difficult job in leading some of the drier subject areas (such as Research methods) but managed to make it all interesting and fun.  In the OESE course he led a brilliant module on Environmental Citizenship which was really inspiring and it made me do a lot of personal reflection about what impact I can have personally and how to best encourage others to do/be their best.  Some of the teaching methods/activities in this module were a bit experimental and it was great to be part of something different from the standard classroom format. 

Ramsey is also very approachable and has a pretty open-door policy for his students so he has got to know many of us quite well over the year, which has also been enhanced through him attending some of the field trips, for which he has given up his ‘free’ time.  His style may be a little unorthodox at times but he is a unique, memorable character who cares about his students and you get the impression that he is really rooting for us all to do our best.

He is kind and supportive and this is very much appreciated.

****

Ramsey is an exceptional lecturer, tutor, academic and supervisor. He spends an enormous amount of time with students, giving feedback, explaining misunderstood concepts and generally being a sounding board for ideas. He is quick to instill his passion for learning in his students, and is incredibly knowledgeable in many fields of research. His devotion to individual students runs far above expectations, and he lavishes time upon reading and commenting extensively on drafts for thesis, as well as assignments.

Ramsey has become the go-to academic support for our entire course (MSc in OESE) throughout the year, and deserves to be recognised as the incredible person and academic that he is. He is truly an asset to the school, and has made my MSc experience unforgettable!

****

I would like to say Ramsey is a teacher that does not look like a teacher, I feel like he is a friend of mine. Just simply stand by his side, I can feel his passion for life and his love for people and the planet. I could still remembered once that I told him this programme did not make sense to me, and I can not figure out the reasons of why I was here, in a small and chilly place, studying something that were meaningless to me. We had a long talk at his office and I have to be honest that, he did not give many useful suggestions to me at that time, but listening to his personal experiences since his 20s and looking into his eyes made me feel much more better.It was very complex to describe what does “better” mean, but later when he became my supervisor for dissertation, I finally understood that “feeling better” meant that I felt a sense of safe to be with him. Because I know he is very reliable and responsible, even though he is quite busy.

****

Ramsey is working hard to develop amazing courses and engaging teaching methods. From the first day on one of his class I saw how different and great teacher he is. His knowledge are impressive and he knows how to share it with his students and how to learn from us. As a foreign non-native English speaker student, I always felt really comfortable, engage and motivated for his courses/assessments. His support and feedback are really helpful.

****

Ramsey is my dissertation supervisor. at the end of a six year part-time Outdoor Environmental and Sustainability Education Masters Programme.  I have had a very difficult time personally during the years, due to family bereavements and Ramsey has been an absolute joy and support in weaving the stories of grief into my academic work on grieving in the natural world.  Every time we meet or have contact by email, he supports my work, challenges my thinking and my self-doubts, and gives me more to think about, read and come back with.  I am learning more through this process than I would have thought possible, which is the point of a dissertation, surely.  There are academic ‘hoops’ to jump through but what is really exciting is Ramsey’s commitment to supporting a risk-taking approach to producing something very personal and real for me.

****

Course syllabi

EDUA11387: Environmental Philosophy and City-Based Learning pdf