Since its early foundation, the Global Health Education and Learning Incubator (GHELI) at Harvard University has pioneered innovative methods of teaching, whether in a traditional brick-and-mortar class or a digital environment. Over the summer, GHELI’s Faculty Director Sue J. Goldie continued tinkering with novel pedagogical methods—designing a home studio with her signature colored pens, sketching key concepts on an iPad, and even hooking a camera to a nook in her car—as a part of Foundations for Public Health, her orientation course for all students at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
The genesis for an orientation course prior to the start of formal classes dates back to 2015, when Dean Julio Frenk identified the need for a common public health foundation for all incoming graduate-level students. Dean Frenk partnered with Dr. Goldie, and they worked closely for several months to conceptualize the core curriculum and develop the instructional materials—teaching it together in 2015. Goldie, together with support from GHELI, further enhanced the course in following years.
The Harvard Chan School recently published a news feature about Dr. Goldie’s state of the art teaching methods that have transcended physical spaces and bridged digital divides during COVID-19, sparking creativity and enthusiasm in students across a myriad of public health programs. Dr. Goldie’s mission has been to refine multimedia so that it would not only be pedagogically effective, but also create an open and inclusive learning environment. To learn more about how to bring some of those tips, tricks, and tools into your own teaching and learning environments, read more about her work in the School’s article.