An instructor who has made it his quest to take the fear out of learning difficult concepts in chemistry, Wayne Lippa has been named the University of Lethbridge’s 2024 Board of Governors Teaching Chair.
By adopting a student-centred approach based on his experiences as a student and incorporating strategies whereby students learn chemistry by doing chemistry, Lippa is noted as an effective and reflective teacher, constantly evaluating the methods he utilizes in his classrooms and labs.
The Board of Governors Teaching Chair recognizes teaching excellence and the scholarship of teaching and learning at ULethbridge. Lippa will be recognized at Spring 2024 Convocation, Ceremony III, on, May 31, 2024, at 9:30 a.m. in the 1st Choice Savings Centre gymnasium.
Wayne Lippa
Never one to shy away from a challenge, Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry Instructor Wayne Lippa (BSc/BEd ’97) faces the daunting task of taking the fear and loathing out of a subject many find difficult to tackle. He does this by adopting a student-centred approach based on his experiences as a student and incorporating strategies whereby students learn the concepts of chemistry by doing chemistry.
Lippa majored in chemistry when he graduated with a combined degree from the University of Lethbridge in 1997. After a short stint as a math teacher at Medicine Hat’s Crescent Heights High School, he was back on the ULethbridge campus that fall as an academic assistant and has been at the University ever since.
As Lippa has progressed throughout his career, he has never forgotten the instructors who positively impacted his learning journey and the environment he found was most conducive to success. Described as an effective teacher, Lippa is also lauded for being reflective in his role, constantly evaluating the methods he utilizes in his classrooms and labs.
His philosophy is rooted in giving his students a personal learning experience, beginning with knowing every one of his students’ names and using them consistently. He incorporates a sense of humour into his teaching and adheres to an open-door policy with no fixed office hours, welcoming questions and discussion. Likewise, he makes himself available for questions through email, even in the evenings, understanding students are active then working on assignments or studying.
Chemistry is an experimental science and Lippa encourages learning by doing, and rather than just giving answers to questions he guides students to discover answers on their own, thereby empowering their growth in learning. It’s a philosophy he applies to his own learning journey — which is ongoing.
Lippa has been a part of the Teaching Centre’s Instructional Skills Workshop (ISW) program since 2012, first being trained as a facilitator and then taking over as a co-coordinator of the program with Dr. Sheila McManus. Its focus is to make people better teachers by allowing them the freedom and security to experiment and try new things while teaching lessons in a safe, constructive environment.
While the ISW program has been extremely positive, participation has waned in recent years due to several factors and Lippa’s Board of Governors Teaching Chair proposal is to review and reinvigorate the program, determining what the ISW will look like in years to come.