Hi, I'm An.
I'm a college-professor-turned-high-school-teacher on a mission to get students to own their learning. I'm passionate about education and innovation and how the overlap between these sectors can transform people.
My Journey as an Educator
I started my journey as an educator as a professor of biomedical engineering. It didn't take very long for me to realize that these aspiring engineers were looking to me for a one-size-fits-all process to solve all their problems, especially the ones on the next exam. They weren't looking to critically think or innovate. Something had to change.
I resolved to go back and teach at the high school level to change the way students think. Since then, one thing has led to another and I'm looking for ways to expand the movement.
Innovative Education
In the last decade, I've had the chance to develop college-level design projects, design a brand-new Innovation Lab at my high school, and create maker-centered STEM courses and other extracurricular offerings.
Design Competitions
Sometimes, short-term, high-stakes hackathons are the way to generate innovative ideas and get students to believe in themselves. I've worked with various organizations to host middle and high school design competitions.
Competitive Robotics
It can be intimidating to get started in competitive robotics. Let me share a bit about how I started the robotics program at my high school and how I use engineering notebooks to track learning.
Visual
Notetaking
I started dabbling with visual notetaking to enrich my own learning and teach in a more engaging way. I also use sketchnotes to capture what I learn at conferences and provide visual summaries to the organizations.
Testimonies
Heather C.
Supervisor
Dr. Nguyen is a STEM leader in the school community. She mentors student research projects, advises her colleagues on ways to integrate design thinking into their lessons, and develops new courses. Innovative educators like Dr. Nguyen teach their students to think and live differently.
Caroline G.
Former Student
Dr. Nguyen's approach was impactful: I was responsible for my learning, while she provided support and guidance, never offering easy answers but empowering me to discover solutions independently.
Bridget B.
Colleague
Dr. Nguyen creates an environment where students feel comfortable finding opportunities through mistakes. No matter their idea, background, or grade, Dr. Nguyen makes them feel like they and their idea can shine.