Sarah Balcom, DVM, MS
Principal lecturer and Director of the Undergraduate Program
Department of Animal and Avian Sciences
University of Maryland
My Courses
This section provides a listing of the courses I teach or have taught at the University of Maryland. You can download a summary of my courses and the numbers of students (by seats offered) I have taught as well.
ANSC 101
Introduction to Animal Sciences
Extensively redesigned and taught this introductory course for the Animal & Avian Sciences major to provide a substantive introduction to animal production industries, research areas in the subdisciplines of the major, written and oral communication regarding scientific and animal welfare issues, career opportunities, and the critical evaluation of research and technical literature in this field. Taught: Fall 2018-present.
ANSC
225/HONR 218C
Love me, Hate me, Use me, Save me: Our conflicting views of animals
Designed and taught this interactive lecture course which considers the varying and often contradictory views of animals in American culture, with a focus on companion animals, animals used for research, and production animals. This course was developed as part of the I-series courses and History/Social Sciences distributive studies courses offered under the University’s General Education program.
Taught: Every Fall: 2012-2016.
Redesigned and offered as an Honors Seminar. Taught: Fall 2017 and Fall 2018.
ANSC
235/245
Applied Small Ruminant Parturition
Popularly known as “lamb watch,” ANSC 235 course introduces students to the theory and practice of small ruminant farming and parturition management on our campus farm. Created a barn manual for the course and revised the course from its prior format. Mentored 2 undergraduate teaching assistants in this course each spring. Taught: Spring semesters 2011- 2019.
ANSC 245- Expanded the content of the 235 course and increased its credit hours to three. Spring semesters 2020 - Present.
Maryland Today Article "Lamb Lessons" (2021)
Washington Post article on this course (2014)
Video clip from the student newpaper, the Diamondback (2012)
Check out the Video from Feb 2022!
Students giving short "sit rep" presentations in the ANSC courtyard.
Students learning how to safely handle cats and dogs at an emergency shelter.
Students organized, executed, and evaluated their plan to host an ice cream social (ICS) using the incident command system (ICS)!
Students giving short "sit rep" presentations in the ANSC courtyard.
ANSC
243
Animals in Disasters
I designed and offered this scholarship in practice general education course to introduce students to the principles and practice of emergency management pertaining to the needs of pets and livestock during disasters.
The course opens by considering “What is an emergency?” and “How do emergencies affect animals and the people who depend on them?” Then, it has students examine the more likely emergency scenarios facing the state of Maryland and how we might educate, organize, and train ourselves to best assist the state and its citizens in preparing for and responding. Based on our scholarship and training, students wrote a plan for creating deployable teams that would be able to assist the Maryland Department of Agriculture (MDA), local county animal response teams (CARTs), and animal-disaster response non-governmental agencies (NGOs) during a disaster modeled on the SART-CART model of animal disaster response.
ANSC
250
Companion Animal Care and Management
I designed this course as part of my job application to the department. I have since revised it to have in included in the Scholarship in Practice category in the new General Education Program. ANSC 250 considers the biology, husbandry, handling, nutrition, and reproduction and animals commonly kept as pets as well as some of the major issues surrounding companion animal care. By the end of the course, students are equipped to research and implement animal care plans for typical companion animal species, and to understand the major issues that arise in commercial and private settings with pets. Taught: Spring 2011; Fall 2012; Spring semesters 2013-2015, 2017-2019.
TA Blog about the course from Spring 2014
ANSC
275
Introduction to Veterinary Medical Science and Practice.
I designed and taught this course to help pre-veterinary students better understand the veterinar profession, and to give those who are unfarmiliar with the profession the opportunity to work through authentic cases with a "real" veterinarian. This course introduces the process of evidence-based medicine and focuses on developing three core learning areas- complex reasoning, critical evaluation of information, and writing. I “flipped” the course and emphasized case-based learning for the second iteration of the course. This course is part of the Natural Sciences and Scholarship in Practice (for non-majors) courses offered under the University’s General Education program. Taught: Spring 2012; Fall semesters 2013- Fall 2017.
ANSC
340
Health Management of Animal Populations
I significantly revised this course to move away from teaching students a litany of animal diseases to memorize, instead focusing student work creating facility health plans. This course teaches students the process through which scientists and veterinarians study disease and implement evidence-based population health programs to improve animal and human health. I “flipped” many of the lectures in this course the third and fourth times it was taught to increase student learning and engagement. This course is part of the Scholarship in Practice (for majors) courses offered under the University’s General Education program. Taught Spring 2011-2015, Spring 2017-2018.
Health Management of Animal Populations
I significantly revised this course to move away from teaching students a litany of animal diseases to memorize, instead focusing student work creating facility health plans. This course teaches students the process through which scientists and veterinarians study disease and implement evidence-based population health programs to improve animal and human health. I “flipped” many of the lectures in this course the third and fourth times it was taught to increase student learning and engagement. This course is part of the Scholarship in Practice (for majors) courses offered under the University’s General Education program. Taught Spring 2011-2015, Spring 2017-2018.
ANSC
379
Undergraduate Teaching Seminar
I created this two credit seminar to support all undergraduates serving as teaching assistants for ANSC courses. Participation is option, and class size ranges from 6-12 students per semester. We read and review literature related to college teaching and learning and the courses in which the students are UTAs. Additionally, students in this seminar have worked on teaching projects to support and improve courses in the department.
Taught Fall and Spring, 2015-present.
ANSC
446
Physiology of Mammalian Reproduction
I made significant revisions to ANSC 446/447-Physiology of Mammalian Reproduction and its associated lab to increase student engagement, include a comprehensive histology component to the curriculum, and better integrate lecture and lab courses. Taught Fall 2010 and Fall 2011.
ANSC
688V
Introduction to university teaching
I created and taught this graduate seminar course on teaching in undergraduate science courses. Students wrote a reflective essay (the start of a teaching philosophy statement), a complete course syllabus, one summative and at least one formative assessment, and gave a teaching demonstration to their peers, helping them to create the beginning of a teaching portfolio. In the course, I emphasized evidence-based pedagogy. Taught: Fall 2013, 2015.
