Nilabh Shastri
Nilabh Shastri (B.Sc., Panjab University, Ph.D., All India institute of Medical Sciences) is Associate Professor of Immunology. He has taught in the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology since 1987. Among his research interests are the molecular mechanisms of immune surveillance and regulation of T-cell responses to complex microbial and mammalian antigens. "
A guru," says Shastri, "is one of the most revered individuals in society in the Indian tradition--a personal instructor--but one who was historically reserved only for royalty. I believe students at Berkeley deserve no less. In line with the guru tradition, I make special efforts to get to know my students, and despite the large size of the lecture classes, I attempt to bring discourse to a personal level."
One of his Graduate Student Instructors recalls his teaching this way: "The lectures seemed much like stories in that I would leave class thinking that I had just attended a movie or play, only to be later surprised at how much I had learned and retained. Rather than just presenting the results of each important accomplishment in the field, Nilabh also chose to explain the history behind the experiments, their rationale, and sometimes even the personal characteristics of the researchers who did them."
One of Shastri's goals in teaching is to move his students beyond simply the facts. He says, "It is even more important to inculcate an appreciation for the sequence of thought and experimental processes that lead to discoveriesÉ.I encourage students to critically analyze not only the conclusions but also to reflect on the implications the new discoveries have for the future and for the larger society."
Colleagues and students cite not only his teaching in the classroom, but his many other efforts to improve undergraduate education, from overseeing the research projects of undergraduates in his lab (almost all of whom have gone on to Ph.D. or M.D. programs), to supervising and mentoring graduate students, and mentoring undergraduate minority students, not only at Berkeley but at other college and universities as well.
According to David H. Raulet, Head of the Division of Immunology, "Professor Shastri's genius as a teacher derives from a rare talent for explicating difficult materials, a natural ability to connect with students, and a steadfast dedication to improve the quality of his teaching."
His joy in teaching and in research is probably best summed up by one student who wrote on a course evaluation, "I'll always remember him saying, 'It's a magical thing being a lymphocyte.'"
Statement Of Teaching Philosophy
I believe education is the single most important asset that defines a human being. Only members of the human species devote more than a quarter of their lives to formal education to gain an understanding of concepts that have evolved over time and are constantly changing.
Effective teaching consists not of articulating all the known facts, but of communicating the ones which are important and being able to explain why. Indeed, it is even more important to inculcate an appreciation for the sequence of thought and experimental processes that lead to discoveries, and how the resulting concepts have proved useful in solving nature's mysteries. I encourage students to critically analyze not only the conclusions but also to reflect on the implications the new discoveries have for the future and larger society. I thus seek to instill in my students a capacity for continuous evaluation and assessment, accompanied by an ability to change and improve their base of knowledge.
A guru is a one of the most revered individuals in society in the Indian tradition--a personal instructor--but one who was historically reserved only for royalty. I believe students at Berkeley deserve no less. In line with the guru tradition, I make special efforts to get to know my students, and, despite the large size of the lecture classes. I attempt to bring discourse to a personal level. Within the first few weeks of the semester I come to know virtually all the students in the class: by taking their photographs, by interacting with them before and after lectures, in office hours, and in the past few years through email which has helped break the otherwise inevitable barriers of time and space.
I have also discovered that training undergraduates in laboratory research is as rewarding as teaching lecture classes. The considerably longer duration of one to six semesters that undergraduate researchers spend in my laboratory allows time for more in-depth interactions. As opposed to lectures where the successful and "correct" answers are given importance, in the laboratory students experience, through their own independent experimental work, the agony and the ecstasy underlying the process leading to these answers. There is no greater joy for a teacher than to see students mature from their first tentative steps in research to becoming accomplished professionals in the field.
photo © Jane Scherr