L&S announced their 2026 Teaching Mentors, including physics PhD students Sam Kramer and Benjamin Beyer. Kramer earned the additional honor of being named a Lead Teaching Mentor.
The L&S Teaching Mentors are the heart of our college level Teaching Assistant (TA) Trainings. They are exceptionally passionate and knowledgeable teachers with proven track records for teaching excellence who work closely with the L&S TA Training and Support Team to facilitate various trainings and mentor L&S TAs. Each Teaching Mentor is chosen through a competitive selection process for their enthusiasm and capacity to help others develop as effective and equitable teachers. They not only serve as role models, but also as sources of support and knowledge for both new and returning TAs.
Lead Teaching Mentors have served as Teaching Mentors more than once and take on an additional leadership role within the program. They support first-time Teaching Mentors as they learn to facilitate the TA Training curriculum. They also work with L&S TA Training and Support Team leadership to strengthen program offerings. In short, they are an invaluable source of expertise, creativity, and serve as deeply valued collaborators.
Sam is a fourth-year Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Physics and has been teaching for Physics 202, a course for engineering major undergraduates that focuses on electricity, magnetism, and optics, since arriving in Madison. Sam also taught for a similar course as an undergraduate at Saint Louis University. In this role, he leads both discussions, which focus on problem solving, and labs, which provide hands-on experience with the concepts being taught. Physics can be an overwhelming subject, so Sam tries to distill the material into manageable chunks for the students, emphasizing the broader concepts underlying the formulas students use and drawing explicit connections between parts of the curricula. This is meant to develop the dynamic problem solving skills students need when encountering problems they have not seen before.
As an undergraduate, Benjamin began teaching introductory courses in physics. Since matriculating as a graduate student in the Department of Physics, Benjamin has continued to teach a wide range of courses, from courses emphasizing experimental laboratory skills to courses with a theoretical flavor. His approach blends connecting with students with breaking down complicated subjects, such that students can connect with the material in the context of their own experiences. He believes that learning physics is just as much about learning how to troubleshoot and make mistakes safely as it is about getting the right answer. Ultimately, his favorite part of teaching is helping to take the intimidation factor out of physics and watching students gain confidence in their own abilities.