Mengyan Dai
assistant professor
Division of Criminology, Criminal Justice and Forensic Studies
B.A., LL.B., University of Science and Technology of China
Ph.D., University of Cincinnati
410.837.5352
mdai@ubalt.edu
When I was a college student in China, a law professor asked me to translate a criminology textbook for him. This experience exposed me to a new world of knowledge about the American criminal justice system and eventually led me to decide to pursue my doctoral studies in criminal justice.
My research strengths lie in the study of criminal justice in general and policing in particular. I have served as assistant editor of Policing: An International Journal of Police Strategies and Management. I am also interested in comparative perspectives in criminal justice.
My teaching philosophy is built upon my understanding of student learning and my own experiences of learning and teaching. Teaching is a process by which the teacher helps students learn, and the teacher is a facilitator of learning. I view myself as a designer of learning environments to produce student learning and success. A positive learning environment should be supportive, cooperative and collaborative.
Realizing that students have different learning styles, I set goals for my students and allow them to achieve these goals in different ways. I want my students to have a sufficient grasp of concepts, principles and skills, so that they can bring them to bear on new problems and situations.
Specifically, there are three basic goals for students: a foundational knowledge goal, an application goal and an integration goal. The foundational knowledge goal requires students to understand and remember things such as facts, terms, concepts and principles. The application goal requires students to be capable of critical thinking (in which students analyze and evaluate), creative thinking (in which students imagine and create) and practical thinking (in which students solve problems and make decisions). The integration goal requires students to recognize and make connections (i.e. similarities and interactions) between information and perspectives in one course and those in other courses.
I also hope my students have the ability to decide in which ways their present competencies suffice and in which ways they require new skills or knowledge.