Tess Bird
  • Home
  • About
  • Research and Teaching
    • Encouraging Providence
    • Social Distancing Study
  • Publications
  • The Podcast
  • Contact

Research and Teaching Portfolio


Picture
Photo by Tess Bird

Encouraging Providence: Uncertainty, Wellbeing, and the Making of New American Futures in the Home

This ethnographic research considered how households negotiate uncertainty and sustain wellbeing over time, particularly during periods of transition or change. Through extensive interviews, participant observation, and photography taken over the course of a year (2015-2016), I documented daily routines and unexpected changes that took place in a selection of middle class households in Providence Country, Rhode Island.

Conducted at the University of Oxford, Oxford, UK

Learn More >>
Picture
Photo by Youssef Naddam

Uncertainty and Wellbeing in Households Experiencing Social Distancing

The Covid-19 pandemic is an uncertain time, leading to social distancing measures with potential implications for household wellbeing. I conducted an online survey with over 100 households in Southern New England and conducted follow-up interviews with a small subset of households in order to find out how people are coping in the first few months of the pandemic.

Conducted at Wesleyan University, Middletown, CT

Learn More >>
Picture
Image from secret industry studies on asbestos and cancer, published here.

Medical-Legal Research

I have worked professionally for over ten years as a medical-legal researcher in occupational, consumer, and environmental health. I have conducted extensive reviews of industry and government documents to understand instances of scientific misconduct and the purposeful creation of uncertainty about product safety.

For more information, see my publications.
Picture

Photo by Florian Klauer

Teaching on Writing Across the Disciplines

As a Mellon Fellow at Wesleyan University (2018-2020), I developed pedagogical tactics for teaching first year interdisciplinary writing and writing in the social sciences. Here are my guides for faculty and students:
  • "A Brief Guide to Teaching Writing Online" (Response to Covid-19)​
  • "How to Think About Writing an Analytical Essay in Any Discipline"
  • "Mindfulness for Long Writing Projects"​
Picture
Image of Student-Created Blog

Teaching on Uncertainty, the Anthropocene, and Social and Environmental Justice

Uncertainty and the Future
​
Wesleyan University First Year Seminar
​Cross-listed: Science in Society, Writing
See: course description


Extreme Landscapes of the Anthropocene
Wesleyan University upper-level course 
Cross-listed: Science in Society, College of the Environment, Writing
Awarded Sustainability and Environmental Justice Pedagogy Initiative Grant
See: course description
  • Visit my students' 2020 website LANDSCAPES OF THE ANTHROPOCENE (pictured left) and read some of their incredible essays and blog posts on themes in social and environmental justice.

Living within the BioLogical
Wesleyan University First Year Seminar
Cross-listed: Science in Society, Writing
See: Course Description 

For earlier courses, see my CV.
Copyright Tess Bird 2021