Dmitry Burshteyn

In addition to teaching, conducting undergraduate research and publishing, I also served as a department chair, taught Foundations sequence, presented with Siena students at multiple conferences including the inaugural Positive Psychology Summit, and founded, co-founded, and organized numerous conferences/ events such as Undergraduate Psychology Conference and Siena-Concordia Globalization Conference.

My Siena Experience

My Teaching Philosophy

I use my enthusiasm to engage students in discussion and to enable them to come up with examples of using new concepts in real-life setting. I structure my classes to engage students in learning activities that might seem difficult to them at first as I search for their zones of proximal development (ZPD). This allows me to get a sense of where they are in their ZPDs and support their individual progress, making them grasp some of the concepts independently and come up with their own insights.

What I Love About Siena

Siena creates a great environment for students to learn. I find that small class sizes at Siena provide the best possible setting and opportunity for an instructor to stimulate students’ interest. I constantly monitor minor aspects of students’ behavior in order to understand when they are confused and not following the material and to come up with on-the-spot intervention. I also recognized that the student-centered approach to research is the best way to make the research process maximally rewarding both for my students and for myself. As a researcher, I have always tried to combine my research ideas with those of my students. This allows me to involve more students in undergraduate research— one of the best ways to provide them with methodological and statistical skills essential to their academic excellence and success in graduate school.

My Favorite Courses to Teach

I like teaching Research Methods and Statistics--two of the most important foundational courses in the field, essential for students’ success in graduate school and future careers. I also love teaching several seminars I developed “Decision Making and Problem Solving” and “Positive Psychology”.