Teaching

Passion for Teaching: I have started teaching elementary school students when I was twelve years old. I have worked as a private tutor for almost a decade to support my studies. I have learned three important lessons. First, I understood many concepts better when I am teaching rather than as a student in the classroom. Next, teaching is a rewarding experience when I am able to explain complex concepts using simple examples. Finally, it is an overwhelming feeling when students provide compliments after they do well in their exams. Naturally, teaching became a passion for me.

Teaching as a Profession: I spent many years in the industry by following the crowd - get a degree from IIT (Indian Institute of Technology), join a high-paying company, and live happily thereafter. I have observed that I am happier when I present some tutorials to my colleagues than when I get a salary hike. It took me a few years but I eventually realized that I love teaching. To become a faculty, I had to do a few small things like taking GRE, serving as a teaching assistant, and finishing PhD, etc. I started teaching as an Assistant Professor in 2004 at the University of Florida. As long as I live, I plan to teach the next generation of engineers and scientists.

Teaching Philosophy: I am a faculty in the CISE department that covers emerging and multidisciplinary courses related to computer science and engineering. My goal is to bring a student to the threshold of knowledge and ignite the interest to cross the threshold. To achieve this goal, I have five simple objectives: (i) cover fundamental concepts as well as state-of-the-art industial practices, (ii) spend as much time as needed before, during, and after the class to answer all the questions of the students, (iii) raise the bar and expect more from the students (instead of an "easy A" course), (iv) focus on the success of the students in the long run by making them competitive at home and abroad, (v) seamless integration of research and education.

Recent Courses: Currently, I teach the following courses. Due to the interdisciplinary nature of these courses, they are able to attract a large number of students (100 - 350) from various science and engineering disciplines.