Jeffrey M. Schell

Research Areas and Interests

Sargassum Studies, Plankton Ecology, Marine Environmental History

Teaching Philosophy

I believe the primary goal of a teacher is to empower students to become independent, life-long learners, and scientifically literate, engaged, citizens of the sea. A successful teacher is one that has worked to become superfluous. Put more eloquently:

A teacher is best when students barely know they exist,
Not so good when students obey and acclaim them
Worse when they are despised.
Fail to honor your students,
They will fail to honor you.
But of a good teacher, who talks little
When their work is done, their aim fulfilled,
The students will say, “We did this ourselves”. Adapted from Lao-Tzu

I guide students toward educational independence by emphasizing core concepts instead of an over-abundance of disconnected facts, context and connections in place of memorization, and critical thinking and problem-solving skills rather than routine. Once a sound foundation of knowledge and skills have been established I provide students with genuine opportunities for inquiry-based learning exercises/labs/projects to test their newly acquired abilities in a challenging, yet supportive environment. By fostering curiosity, communication, collaboration and creativity throughout this journey students develop self-confidence in their command of the scientific process, the final ingredient in a student’s educational independence. As empowered citizens of the sea that value and understand the role of scientific inquiry my students are prepared to find solutions to today’s wicked environmental problems.

Throughout my career I have been recognized as a passionate, knowledgeable, insatiably curious, and approachable educator who works tirelessly to share my interests and enthusiasm for the marine world with every student. Early in my career at SEA I was awarded the prestigious Jim Millinger Award for Excellence in Teaching (2009) and have continued to hone my teaching practice, and that of my peers, through a successful Davis Education Fund grant (2012-14) that supported innovative curriculum design and ultimately led to the creation of a new Sea Semester offering – Global Oceans in 2015. For Pacific Reef Expedition I designed an entire online, course curriculum in oceanography that essentially ‘flipped’ the classroom. Student-centered learning occurred during small discussion groups online using Google Hangouts.

I create a collaborative, adaptive, active learning environment in my classroom by mixing in a variety of activities, games, and word association/drawing/sketching exercises with traditional lectures and discussion. I intentionally sequence course content to build on prior knowledge and identify and correct misconceptions early on. I incorporate interdisciplinary approaches in my classes by teaching content through case studies, storytelling, and participating in local citizen science and community outreach efforts. I make abundant use of analogy, anecdote, and aphorisms to help student connect and understand scientific concepts. Biogeochemical cycles can be related to the legend of the phoenix and First Nation myths. Distribution of ocean primary productivity can be understood through the story of Goldilocks. The Gordian Knot can teach us lessons about marine conservation. Coastal eutrophication and dead zones are but the embodiment of a familiar aphorism. This classroom technique is a direct result of the liberal arts tradition of Jesuit education I have been so fortunate to have had.

In a similar fashion I use seemingly antiquated assessment techniques that I believe promote student engagement with course content. I expand STEM to include art and reflection (STREAM) by employing a combined lab notebook/field journal/sketchbook. These ‘journals’ are a repository for scientific terminology and class notes, responses to discussion prompts, concept maps and flow diagrams of core concepts, a record of brainstorming sessions, illustrations of flora and fauna, reflections on course concepts and their application to real world environmental issues, and documentation of field observations. This compendium of scientific knowledge, created by each student, highlights transdisciplinary relationships and promotes student creativity and innovation.

A worthy scientist is a keen observer of the world around them, one who notes pattern, association and ponders their significance. There is no better training to hone such skills than that of sketching in a field journal. As John Ruskin argued in the late 1800s, learning to draw is not about becoming an artist, but rather learning how to truly see, to take notice rather than merely looking . An added benefit according to Ruskin, and which I have observed of my own science students, that in teaching them to draw I have not turned a budding scientist into an artist, but rather made them happier as a scientist.
The primary purpose of my role as Chief Scientist has been the mentorship of independent research projects in oceanography, reef ecology, and marine environmental history. Over a span of 20 years I have guided over 1200 college undergraduate students through the process of scientific discovery! I thoroughly enjoy sharing the journey with each of my students as they learn how to observe the environment (first-hand or through the scientific literature), reveal patterns, ask questions, identify gaps in our understanding, hypothesize possible explanations, design and implement a sampling plan (or lab experiment), and finally to wrestle with data, its meaning and the most effective way to communicate what they have learned to a broad, diverse audience. Along the way I support and encourage each student to persevere, learn from mistakes, iterate, and try again. I believe providing students a genuine experience with scientific inquiry is the best way to hone these valuable transferable skills: review of disciplinary literature; critical thinking, synthesis, and problem-solving skills; data analysis, visualization, and design; objective interpretation and evaluation of evidence and source material; and effective communication in many forms (written, oral, podcasts, Tweets, video), to many audiences, and for many purposes.

Selected Publications

• Siuda, A.N.S.; Blanfuné, A.; Dibner, S.; Verlaque, M.; Boudouresque, C.-F.; Connan, S.; Goodwin, D.S.; Stiger-Pouvreau, V.; Viard, F.; Rousseau, F.; Michotey, F.; Schell, J.M.; Changeaux, T.; Aurelle, D.; and Thibaut, T. Morphological and Molecular Characters Differentiate Common Morphotypes of Atlantic Holopelagic Sargassum. Phycology 2024, 4, 256–275. https://doi.org/10.3390/ phycology4020014
• Schell JM, Goodwin DS, Volk RH, Siuda ANS. 2024. Preliminary explorations of environmental tolerances and growth rates of holopelagic Sargassum morphotypes. Aquatic Botany 190:103723 https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aquabot.2023.103723
• Goodwin DS, Siuda ANS, Schell JM. 2022. In situ observation of holopelagic Sargassum distribution and aggregation state across the entire North Atlantic from 2011 to 2020. PeerJ 10:e14079 https://doi.org/10.7717/peerj.14079
• Martin L, Taylor M, Grayson H, Goodwin DS, Schell JM, Siuda ANS. 2021. Pelagic Sargassum morphotypes support different rafting motile epifauna communities. Marine Biology. 168 (7):115.
  https://doi-org.library.proxy.mbl.edu/10.1007/s00227-021-03910-2
• Schell JM, Goodwin DS, and Siuda ANS. 2015 Recent Sargassum inundation events in the Caribbean – Shipboard observations reveal dominance of a previously rare form. Oceanography 28(3): 8-10.

Professional Affiliations and Memberships

Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography (ASLO)

Awards & Honors

• Jim Millinger Award for Excellence in Teaching
• NSF-GK-12 Teaching Fellow
• College of Letters & Sciences Teaching Fellow
• Writing Across the Curriculum Teaching Fellow

Personal Interests

Soccer, Kayaking, Hiking, Traveling to see natural wonders, Bird Watching, Beach-combing, Reading Fantasy and Science Fiction novels