Teaching Excellence in Focus: Faculty Panel on Student-Centered Teaching

At the Fulton Schools of Engineering Education Seminar (SEEdS) social, faculty and staff gathered for an engaging panel on teaching excellence, featuring recipients of the Top 5% Teaching Award – an honor based on student nominations and feedback.

Moderated by Marnie Wong, the discussion explored what quality teaching looks like in practice, how to adapt to student needs and stay motivated – while consistently demonstrating innovative, student-centered instructional practices across diverse engineering disciplines.

Panelists included Ajay Bansal, Dhruv Bhate, Kristen Parrish, and Ryan Milcarek – each of whom shared stories of evolving their practice to better serve students, whether through reflective inquiry, AI integration, peer-led team learning, or teaching problem-solving.

From left to right: Kristen Parrish, Ajay Bansal, Dhruv Bhate, Ryan Milcarek, and Marnie Wong.

“What I started doing is that instead of teaching them [students] concepts, I started presenting those concepts as problems in class. I would tell them that there was a time in history when this concept didn’t exist – what existed was a problem – and somebody solved that problem by inventing the concept. So, let’s try and see. This approach requires not that high prerequisite knowledge, and students do not feel intimidated – they feel supported,” noted Ajay Bansal.

Building on this idea, Ryan Milcarek shared: “Problem-solving is great. I integrated peer-led team learning – and the idea is you solve problems in peer groups primarily, and really, you’re co-constructing knowledge of the course with social interactions that build confidence in your understanding while also developing interdisciplinary knowledge. We found that this method helps everybody – everyone improves – but who it helps most is the students who struggle.”

Faculty and staff gathered for the SEEdS panel on teaching excellence.

Each panelist offered a unique perspective on how quality teaching can be shaped by course context, student needs, and personal teaching philosophy. Their reflections highlighted a shared commitment to adaptability, empathy, and continuous improvement in the classroom.

Watch the full video of the panel below and check out the rest of our seminar recordings in the Fulton Schools of Engineering Education Seminars (SEEdS) playlist