Steve MacNeil

Steve MacNeil is an associate professor and chair in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. He has presented locally, nationally and internationally on his teaching methods and his research on collaborative testing, the flipped-classroom approach to teaching, and metacognition and student learning. In 2018, MacNeil was honoured with a D2L Innovation Award in Teaching and Learning. Today, he’s inspired by students to provide them with clear (“and high!”) expectations, and ample resources to learn independently and collaboratively to achieve their goals

MacNeil’s teaching philosophy

Students need to actively construct their own knowledge. It cannot be transferred to them. My philosophy is to teach when necessary but more so to provide my students with the resources to teach themselves. Students also need to be able to assess what they have learned after being (self) taught. To encourage this, I embed frequent formative assessments into all courses, introduce students to the concept of metacognition and provide metacognitive strategies to improve students’ ability to self-assess.

What does being a Teaching Fellow mean to you?

Being a Teaching Fellow provides me with increased opportunities to engage with and learn from like-minded faculty and staff at Laurier who care about teaching and learning. It motivates me to share my ideas, experiences and expertise with the goal to increase conversations about teaching and learning. The Teaching Fellowship provided me with the time and funding to disseminate the results of my experimentation with flipping the classroom for introductory organic chemistry and my experience using prior learning assessments, immediate feedback and learning task inventories to develop students’ metacognitive skills.

Learn More

• The Impact of Metacognition on Learning
• Laurier prof wins prestigious international award for innovative teaching video
• Steve MacNeil Faculty Profile