What's Current with Jennifer Peter

For nearly two decades, Jennifer Peter, known to her students as JP, has been a familiar face at Western University. What began as a passion for plant ecology has since evolved into a career combining the disciplines of science and statistics. Beyond the classroom, however, there’s much more to discover about the lecturer behind Biology/Statistics 2244. From her love of ecology to her unexpected journey into university teaching, we sat down with Peter to learn more about her experiences, teaching philosophy, and the advice she has for the next generation of science students.

Q: You first came to Western in 2008 to teach ecology on a four-month contract. How did that turn into an 18-year career teaching something completely different?

JP: I came on a four-month contract teaching ecology in the fall term. After that, I was hired through Indigenous Services to support first-year First Nations students. I continued teaching ecology on short-term contracts and eventually moved into teaching first-year biology.

Along the way, I picked up a couple of contracts in the statistics department and eventually started teaching the cross-listed Biology/Statistics course. It was really a natural transition from teaching biology courses to statistics courses, primarily for biology students.

I'm actually still contract-based, typically working on three- to four-year contracts. So, in some ways, I've just kept going from that original four-month contract!

Q: You're the only lecturer for Biology/Statistics 2244 at Western. Why do you think it's important to have a course that combines biology and statistics?

JP: There's actually some history behind that. The two courses used to be separate, one in biology and one in statistics. Biology students could take either, which felt a bit redundant, so the departments agreed to combine them into one joint course.

In disciplines like biology, analyzing data is incredibly important. We collect data to answer questions, but there's always uncertainty involved. Statistics gives us mathematical approaches to draw more objective conclusions.

Statistics itself is a scientific discipline that develops and researches these methods, while biology needs the applied version of them. So, I think it makes complete sense for biology students to take statistics.

Q: You completed your Bachelor of Education at Queen's University. What made you pursue undergraduate teaching rather than elementary or high school education?

JP: It actually starts with my dad. He was a high school teacher who taught law, geography, and history, and I used to help him mark his multiple-choice law exams after dinner.

When I first entered university, I thought I wanted to study psychology, but I quickly switched to biology because I loved what I had learned in high school. Eventually, I became interested in other disciplines, like geology and economics, and completed a degree in environmental science.

During graduate school, I worked as a teaching assistant and discovered how much I enjoyed teaching. I loved thinking about how to explain concepts to students, especially hypothesis testing in statistics for a third-year ecology course.

After graduate school, I completed my Bachelor of Education with the intention of becoming a high school biology and math teacher. While applying for high school positions, I happened to see an opening to teach second-year ecology at Western.

I applied on a whim, Western hired me, and I've been here ever since!

Q: Have you always known that teaching was your passion, or do you think it's ever too late for students to discover what they truly enjoy?

JP: Teaching wasn't necessarily at the forefront of my mind when I was younger. I was originally interested in psychology, particularly neurotransmitters and theories that help us understand the world.

Eventually, I discovered ecology and became fascinated by the theories that explain patterns in nature. I loved being able to think about what was happening and develop hypotheses to explain it.

I think I started realizing that teaching might be in my future during a three-week alpine ecology field course taught by Jack Miller, who was a faculty member in Western's Department of Biology.

On the last night, the students gave everyone awards, and I received the "Mountain Avens Award." Mountain avens was this plant that smelled amazing, and I thought we should patent a cologne out of it!

The award was for the person most likely to be teaching that course in 15 years. I thought that was a pretty accurate description of who I was and what I might end up doing.

I think finding your passion can sometimes be a winding road. But if you love getting up in the morning to do what you're doing most days, that's probably where your passion lies.

Q: What do students struggle with most in your course, and how does that influence your teaching philosophy?

JP: I think the biggest challenge is that statistics is a completely new discipline for many students.

Students entering biology or medical sciences already have some background in those subjects from high school or first year. Most students, though, haven't had much exposure to statistics.

That means I have to help students understand the concepts and learn how to apply them, especially because this might be the only statistics course they take during their degree.

Another challenge is motivation. Students studying biology, medical sciences, or computer science aren't necessarily pursuing statistics because it's their main interest.

My goal is to give students an authentic understanding of statistics while helping them develop fundamental skills, such as graphing and analyzing data.

I try to make lectures engaging by encouraging participation and incorporating students' ideas into what I'm teaching. I also design assignments that allow students to choose research questions they're personally interested in. That way, they have more motivation to engage with the material while still demonstrating their understanding.

Q: With your background in plant ecology, is there anything from that part of your life that has stayed with you?

JP: I originally went into plant community ecology because I loved being outdoors. I grew up camping, and I always enjoyed being in nature.

My secret goal as a teenager was actually to become a national park warden. I wanted to spend time outside showing people plants and teaching them about the natural environment.

Obviously, I ended up in statistics and teaching instead, so that didn't quite happen!

But my family still recognizes my love for plants, which is why they give me plant-themed LEGO sets. It keeps me connected to my background in ecology, and the best part is that I can't kill the plants in my office if I'm not there to water them!

Q: Finally, what advice would you give to science students at Western?

JP: I think the one piece of advice I'd give to science students, or any undergraduate students, is to remember that your time at university is just a couple of years of your life.

You might come into university thinking you know exactly what you want to do four years from now, but you have to remain open to the possibility that things might change.

You might take an elective in Greek language or classics and suddenly discover an entirely new world that leads you somewhere unexpected.

Take the time to explore other options. If they don't go well, they don't go well. But if they do, you've discovered something new about yourself.

University is a time for learning, not just career-directed learning, but learning about who you are.