Professor Jean Marie Brown Q&A

Teaching in the MLA since:				2022
Specialty/Area of Research:				Journalism
MLA Courses Taught:				Cultural Conflicts Societal Fault Lines

 

 

 

 

 

How many years have you been teaching in the MLA program and what class or classes have you taught?

This is my second-year teaching in MLA program. I have taught Special Problems — Cultural Conflicts Societal Fault Lines. 

 

Tell us a little bit about your specialty or area of research?

As a career journalist I have worked with the Maynard Institute for Journalism Education to develop the Fault Lines® framework, which explores how social identity influences how people process information. In short, we use Fault Lines® to consider why two people can see the same thing and have completely different explanations of what happened. 

 

 

How does your background inform your teaching and scholarship?

My work helps me develop course work that helps people come to understand how they process information and respect how it might differ from others.  

 

How do you try to make the material in your class engaging considering most students complete their MLA degree 100% online?

I look for engaging events that allow students to explore how they processed the events and discuss the events in threaded discussion to see how others view it.  

 

What is an interesting fact about yourself that you like to share with your students?

I have five older brothers.  

 

What do you hope students walk away from your class having learned or gained?

I hope people come to understand that often there is no single interpretation to an event and that we should discuss differing points of view with respect.