Teaching Philosophy and Strategies
Sociologically Informed
Using innovative learning strategies that are productive for diverse learning needs and conscientious course design, I make my courses accessible to all students.
Student-Centered
I design my courses for meaningful learning opportunities by employing student-centered learning approaches that meets students where they are.
Collaborative Learning (CL)
Students have the opportunity to learn from one another, practicing taking on others’ perspectives and developing their communication skills.
Game-Base Learning (GBL)
Students engage with abstract theories and ideas in a real-life, dynamic microcosm that provides deeper understandings to promote transference.
Problem-Based Learning (PBL)
Students develop critical thinking skills to be able to accurately apply sociological concepts and theories in a messy social world.
Student Feedback
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
September 2022 - Present
INSTRUCTOR, Social Sciences Department
Walla Walla Community College
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Introduction to Sociology (SOC 101)
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Aging and Society (SOC 206)
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Victimology (CJ 426)
August 2013 - August 2022
INSTRUCTOR AND TEACHING ASSISTANT, Department of Sociology
University of Colorado Boulder
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Deviance in U.S. Society (SOCY 1004)
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Sexualities (SOCY 1006)
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Sex, Gender and Society I (SOCY 1016)
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Drugs in U.S. Society (SOCY 2034)
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Violence against Women and Girls (ETHN/SOCY/WMST 3314)
September 2018 - May 2021
VISITING INSTRUCTOR, Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice
Pacific Lutheran University
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Introduction to Sociology (SOCI 101)
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Social Problems (SOCI 240)
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Drugs in U.S. Society (SOCI 287)
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Medical Sociology (SOCI 387)
August 2017 - May 2018
VISITING INSTRUCTOR, Department of Sociology
University of Colorado Denver
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Introduction to Social Psychology (SOCY 2642)
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Medical Sociology (SOCY 3440)
What students are saying...
Fall 2022
"Marley Olson has a great program with how she teaches her class. Her class is very well organized, which makes it easy to complete this course entirely online. When I reached out to her, she responded very quickly. Overall, Marley Olson is doing a great job!"
Fall 2022
"At the start of the Fall Quarter I felt really lost and felt like I was not going to make it because I couldn't understand mainly because I was a new Running Start students but once I met with you through zoom I felt more confident and less stressed."
Fall 2022
"I really enjoy Marleys class. I am specifically taking classes next term she is offering. She is funny, organic and understands that not every student is going to learn the same and acknowledges that. She always makes sure the class understands and ask for our opinion so she can continue improving her teaching skills."
Summer 2022
"I thought this online class was ran very well and it very easy to follow. I was able to contribute my ideas every week with discussion posts and construct criticism on other classmates that did help me. I was able to use my creative on a final paper and express my knowledge on the subject with weekly quizzes. These helped me ensure that I was learning the material, which was very helpful."
Fall 2022
"I really enjoy the inclusive environment that she has worked hard to build. She is really good at reading the room and shifting gears to help the students socialize and exchange ideas regarding the subjects. Technology was the only enemy to our learning environment."
Fall 2022
"Shes helped grow my confidence this quarter and for the rest of my academic career. Given me hope in kind and helpful instructors, helping me remember I'm not always one in a million and there's help, kind and funny overall."
Fall 2022
"I have enjoyed this class because of the teacher. I am planning to take an online class of hers next quarter that i am really looking forward to."
Spring 2021
“One of the best classes I have taken since being at CU! Thank you so much!”
Spring 2021
"Honestly, I can't really think of any constructive criticism. The class was straightforward, you made it very obvious from the beginning what you expected of us, you responded to emails in a timely manner, and I feel like I learned a lot in this class."
Spring 2021
"By far this professor was my most engaged and dedicated teacher this semester. She consistently put in great effort to create an engaging learning environment for students and clearly worked hard to facilitate constructive discussion and learning."
Spring 2021
"This instructor facilitated many in class activities that challenged me to learn. She helped engage the class via zoom through large and small group discussions, a variety of activities, and class games. The assignments were challenging and required me to engage with my peers and with the material in the course. Our class discussions and readings consistently helped me learn more and challenged me to think in new ways. The assigned projects in class challenged me the most, as they asked me to use my own ideas and information and include what we learned in class to formulate and present my ideas."
Spring 2021
“I think the most effective aspects of this course was the integrated use of TED talks. I personally learned a lot of things that helped me connect this course to the outside world through listening and watching the TED talks that came with each unit. I learned things that will stick with me for the rest of my life which allowed me to share these realizations with other peers that did not take this course.”
Spring 2021
“I personally am not a fan of asynchronous learning but that is what I signed up for and Olson did a great job communicating assignments and providing helpful resources."
Spring 2021
"Loved your energy in class and you were absolutely amazing at teaching us concepts without making it super complicated. Thank you for a great semester!"
J-Term 2021
"Professor Olson was very thorough in her communication, both in class and over email. I had very few questions during the term about assignments and content overall, which I attribute to her ability to cover all pertinent information."
J-Term 2021
"Dr. Olsen gave us many resources in order to learn outside of class as well as offered us different ways of learning. She was also very accommodating of different people's needs within the class. She offered consistent office hours and different ways for us to learn (aka synchronous, asynchronous). This instructor did a very good job of making sure everyone was cared for within this class. It was a very safe environment."
J-Term 2021
"The instructor challenged me to learn by thinking about drugs and the course content in a different way. She encouraged thoughtful inquiry by putting us into breakout rooms to engage in a more conversation in smaller groups about what we were learning or discussing. The course activities that challenged me to learn the most were the papers that were assigned. They challenged me to learn by making sure I understood the course content and applying the paper topics to the course material."
J-Term 2021
"The instructor was great at communicating the learning objectives for the day as well as expectations for assignments. As well, her lectures were actually some of the most engaging out of many I've experienced before, she's very relatable and personable. I really appreciated this in the context of this class, for she related the content to our lives very frequently. She answered questions in a very clear way and emailed back in a reasonable time. As well, she made sure that her intentions were very clear regarding controversial topics."
J-Term 2021
"The instructor encouraged us to respond in class, which was very helpful with zoom learning. She also prompted interesting and unique breakout room questions which really helped when it came to meaningful conversations with my peers. As well, the primary source reading was a unique and challenging way of self-teaching, for it inspired inquiry before class and made the lectures more meaningful with context. I was very impressed with how much the instructor related topics to understandable stories and statistics."
J-Term 2021
"I thought the Sakai site was very easy to navigate. I especially liked how the resources page was set up. None of my other classes have really utilized this function yet, and I thought it was really easy to navigate. I also found email reminders very helpful."
J-Term 2021
"Very organized. Professor Olson had office hours for any student to come in to ask questions if something wasn’t clear, but I didn’t even need to because she would either clarify something in more detail through an email or just mention it in class."
Fall 2020
"Marley Olson made it super easy to keep up on assignments and tests throughout the semester. The content was very clear and very fun to learn about."
Fall 2020
"I really enjoyed this class and the structure of it. I think that the weekly discussions and quizzes really helped in getting students engaged. The discussion questions were thought provoking and unique for each week and really helped the further the understanding around this subject. "
Fall 2020
"Professor Olson's class was a great experience for me! She always answered my emails with questions in a very timely manner and always offered the class help and was available to do zoom meetings. Her assignments were very clear in the instructions and she approached every instant of this class with in a kind manner. I would love to take another course taught by Professor Olson."
Fall 2020
"Professor Olson was a pleasure to have as an instructor this semester. She communicates clearly, always early, and simply - the few occasions I needed clarification, she was EXTREMELY prompt in returning an email/message. The assignments were thoughtfully designed, and you can see the love/passion for the field of sociology really come through. Thoroughly enjoyed this class and it was in large part because of her guidance and instruction!"
Fall 2020
"I just want to say thank you for being an amazing professor! You allowed us to have so many opinions and ideas that you never counted as wrong because it came from us. You provided the material, but the whole institution was allowed to run due to the extra context and different perspectives."
Fall 2020
"I think this is the most eye-opening class I have ever taken in my entire life. I have learned about many aspects of addiction, drugs, culture, and social constructs that help me understand my family, friends, and peers. For that, I could not be more thankful."
Fall 2020
"I really enjoyed this course! I felt like Marley did a great job on her lectures. I learned a ton during this class and I think that Marley is a great instructor. I think the discussions work really well to make people critically think or connect to real life."