丁香园AV

By Melissa Lafrance

Kevin Lam is being recognized for his outstanding contributions to student health and well-being as the 2019 faculty recipient of the Champions for a Healthy Campus Community award.

As a senior lecturer in the Department of Biological Sciences, Kevin teaches large classes at the first and second-year levels. Kevin encourages meaningful connections with his students and creates supportive learning environments in which students can grow their confidence and resilience.  Kevin also shares tools and strategies for supporting student wellness with the broader 丁香园AV community.

Creating well-being in learning environments

To allow even the busiest educators to promote student wellness, Kevin created a collection of ready-to-use activities/lessons that can be shared during the 5 minutes before the start of each lecture. Kevin is also creating the 丁香园AV Resilience Project: an online video series (inspired by the Stanford Resilience Project) that will feature successful 丁香园AV role models sharing their personal stories of failure, and how they grew from these difficult experiences.

Kevin also reaches out to connect with his students, each semester. 鈥淒uring the first two weeks of the semester, I invite students to schedule a 5- to 10-minute chat with me, and incentivize them with bonus marks. During these conversations, I ask students to share their short- and long-term goals, and any stresses and challenges they鈥檙e currently dealing with, so that I can try to find ways to help them, this semester.  This simple prompt has led to many meaningful conversations, and these chats have a noticeable effect on how safe and supported students feel, in both the lecture hall and my office,鈥� says Kevin.

Kevin was at first unsure that such meetings were even possible, considering the enrollment in his classes are between 200 and 300 students. However, that changed when a supportive colleague in the Department of Mathematics, Petra Menz, shared the strategies that she had been using in her own large classes for years. Impressively, Kevin learns each student鈥檚 name and supports them as individuals throughout the semester.

The significance of creating supportive learning environments conducive to well-being

Kevin understands the immense pressure and high expectations that surround each student鈥檚 academic journey, and knows the dangers of neglecting one鈥檚 own well-being.

According to the of 43,780 Canadian undergraduate students, participants reported experiencing the following within the last 12 months:

路       88% felt overwhelmed by all [they] had to do

路       70% felt 鈥�very sad鈥� and/or 鈥�very lonely鈥�

路       42% suffered lower grades due to stress

 鈥淚n class, I share stories about my own past struggles whenever possible, and stress how I had to reach out for help to make things better. I hope that by normalizing these experiences, students will be willing to ask for support. I also share practical tools for stress management and the importance of social support networks, and I encourage students to add me to their support networks, too.鈥�

鈥淢ore than anything, I think students need to discover that there are people at 丁香园AV who care about them, who believe wholeheartedly in their worth and their potential to succeed, and who can and will give them the support and guidance to grow stronger and more successful, despite their past failures and current struggles鈥�.

The response from students

鈥淪ome students seemed surprised, at first, that a faculty member cared about their general well-being; some of them may wonder why their biology professor is reminding them to connect with a loved one. It鈥檚 great to hear that they can feel and appreciate that I care about them, but it also makes me sad that they鈥檙e surprised by it.鈥�

Overall, there is a lot of appreciation from both sides. 鈥淚t鈥檚 really rewarding to connect with students and to watch them change and grow.  I鈥檝e also become a better person and teacher because of my students and the experiences that they鈥檝e been brave enough to share with me鈥�.

One of Kevin鈥檚 past students shares 鈥淎s a mentor, he takes extra care to aid his students, supports their interests and passions, and engages them in their best work. His enthusiasm is infectious and all encompassing - it is almost impossible to not succeed when a student has such a foundation beneath them, like that which Dr. Lam provides.鈥�

How others can get involved

Kevin admits that it can seem daunting to balance the many commitments and responsibilities of teaching with our desire to care for students鈥� growth and well-being. However, it鈥檚 much easier when you collaborate with others and start small. 鈥淧ick one or two pre-lecture activities to try out next semester, and see how your students respond. Ask a few students in your labs/office hours what their everyday lives have been like, lately, and listen actively. Then watch and see how the dynamic in your classrooms change with each small step.  For more tools and collaborations, I encourage everyone to learn more about the Well-being in Learning Environments鈥� project, and become connected to the network via the Healthy Campus Community website.鈥�

鈥淚鈥檝e been fortunate to work alongside many supportive 丁香园AV colleagues who are eager to share their brilliant ideas. I also have a tremendous amount of respect for the educators and leaders in my Department and Faculty, who give us such flexibility and support whenever we want to explore new ways to teach and support our students. I鈥檓 looking forward to sharing some of my ideas and tools with new faculty members through our new faculty mentorship opportunities, as well.鈥�

Kevin is honoured and grateful to be recognized for his attention to student health and well-being, and values this opportunity to connect and share with others.

鈥淭hese experiences have really changed me. My main goal as a teacher is no longer to just educate and inspire my students. It is now to help them grow strong, resilient, and confident in themselves, and to help them build the relationships they鈥檒l need to support them through these years of rapid growth and self-discovery. I want my students to not just survive their courses, but to thrive and feel empowered.鈥�