The Learning Incubator
Welcome
The Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences has established The Learning Incubator (LInc), whose mission is innovation of pedagogy in engineering and science. More
LInc Announces Recipients of 2024-2025 Faculty Fellowships
Congratulations to Stephanie Gil, PhD; Vijay Janapa Reddi, PhD; Christopher Lombardo, PhD; Ariel Procaccia, PhD; and Patrick Slade, PhD who have been awarded a LInc Faculty Fellowship for the academic year 2024-2025 and to Timothy O’Brien, PhD and Theodore Svoronos, PhD who will be LInc Associates for the academic year 2024-2025.
2024-2025
LInc Faculty Fellow
Assistant Professor of Computer Science
Course: CS182 - Planning and learning methods in AI
Course Design: Fall 2024
Course Implementation: Spring 2025
John L. Loeb Associate Professor of Engineering and Applied Sciences
LInc Faculty Fellow
Course: CS249r - Tiny Machine Learning
Course ReDesign: Fall 2024
Course Implementation: Fall 2025
LInc Faculty Fellow
Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies in Electrical Engineering and Mechanical Engineering; Lecturer on Engineering Sciences
Course: ES 105hfr - Humanitarian Design Projects
Course ReDesign: Spring 2025
Course Implementation: Spring 2026
LInc Associate
Lecturer in Public Policy, Harvard Kennedy School
Course: MLD201 Exercising Leadership: The Politics of Change
Course Design: Fall 2024
Course Implementation: Fall 2025
LInc Faculty Fellow
Gordon McKay Professor of Computer Science
Course: CS 136 - Economics and Computation
Course Design: Fall 2024
Course Implementation: Spring 2025
LInc Faculty Fellow
Assistant Professor of Bioengineering
Course: ES 126/226 - Biomechanics of Movement
Course Design: Fall 2024
Course Implementation: Fall 2025
LInc Associate
Lecturer, Harvard Kennedy School
Course: API-201: Quantitative Analysis and Empirical Methods
Course Design: Spring 2025
Course Implementation: Fall 2025
Call for Proposals: LInc Faculty Fellowships 2025-2026
Submission Deadline: 2/14/25
The Learning Incubator (LInc) is pleased to announce a Call for Proposals for LInc Faculty Fellowships for the 2025-20256 Academic Year. A LInc Faculty Fellowship permits faculty to dedicate time normally devoted to teaching a course to the (re)-design of an existing course to implement new research-based pedagogies and improve learning gains. More
Reflections from LInc Faculty Fellows
Owning Participation
Michael D. Smith, John H. Finley, Jr. Professor of Engineering and Applied Sciences, LInc Faculty Fellow (2020-2021)
Many of us value student participation in our classes. It reflects student engagement with our course material, and it is a critical component of active learning—both of which we all know are fundamental to student learning and success. But how do we encourage students to participate meaningfully in our classes? How do we send the signal that participation matters without making it all about the grade or a game of guess-what-the-instructor-values? In answering these questions, I'll talk about a successful reboot of participation and participation grading in my discussion-focused course. Presentation - LInc Exchange - Reimagining Teaching and Learning at Harvard - View Video
Leveraging asymmetry in student's prior knowledge through peer learning exercises
Salil Vadhan, Vicky Joseph Professor of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics, LInc Faculty Fellow (2020-2021) & Lead PI on Harvard’s Privacy Tools Project, teaches COMPSCI 120: Introduction to Algorithms and their Limitations, a new introductory course in theoretical computer science “aimed at giving students the power of using mathematical abstraction and rigorous proof to understand computation with confidence.” Many computer science students are “builders” who enjoy the creative aspect of the field, yet their mathematical backgrounds are often quite diverse; to some, mathematical theory is unfamiliar. In redesigning the undergraduate computer science curriculum, it was a priority to make this “new language, reasoning, and way of thinking” accessible to students early in the program. Read More
Designing the classroom for deeper student engagement and feedback on learning
L Mahadevan, Lola England de Valpine Professor of Applied Mathematics in SEAS, and Professor of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, and of Physics in FAS used his SEAS Learning Incubator LInc Faculty Fellowship to emphasize active learning in his Mathematical Modeling course. He implemented a flipped classroom approach to enable students to come to class with problems and questions to collaborate on, time to develop their own problems from scratch, and work on modeling with peers. - More
Instrumental Lessons in Engineering
Rob Wood, SEAS LInc Faculty Fellow and Charles River Professor of Engineering and Applied Sciences has implemented his newly designed course, Engineering the Acoustical World. Read More - Instrumental Lessons in Engineering.
Study shows students in ‘active learning’ classrooms learn more than they think
For decades, there has been evidence that classroom techniques designed to get students to participate in the learning process produces better educational outcomes at virtually all levels. And a new Harvard study led by Louis Deslauriers, Logan McCarty, Kelly Miller, Greg Kestin, and Kristina Callaghan, now a physics lecturer at the University of California, Merced.suggests it may be important to let students know it. Read More
Linc Conversations
LInc Conversations - Eric Mazur, Linc Faculty Director, engages educational leaders in conversation. Click here for more info.
LInc Exchange: Reimagining teaching & learning at Harvard
Welcome to the LInc Exchange, an innovative conference where Harvard faculty reflect on the lessons learned from the pandemic disruption and invite you to reimagine education at Harvard moving forward. The unprecedented disruption to the educational landscape challenged us to transform the way we teach. As we head into the next school year, this is the time to reflect on the lessons learned and consider new modes of engagement and assessment for the next academic year. More Information
SEAS LInc Activity Reports
Many thanks to all who participated in the past year!
We look forward to your participation in the coming year!
LInc Activity Report: July 1, 2022 - June 30, 2023
LInc Activity Report: July 1, 2021 - June 30, 2022
