We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Pamela Kaylor a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Pamela, appreciate you joining us today. Let’s start with education – we’d love to hear your thoughts about how we can better prepare students for a more fulfilling life and career.

Socrates said, “Education is the kindling of a flame, not the filling of a vessel.” Our students are not empty vessels needing for us to only pour in knowledge. Education is best served as learning by doing or the application of knowledge as we are learning. As a professor, I learned early in my teaching career that I learned best when teaching the material because I was contemplating on experiences and how to share the information. As a learner, I learn best through personal experience and opportunities to practice acquired knowledge.

As a professor of Intercultural Communication teaching about how students can learn to engage with other cultures, the greatest learning opportunities are when students can engage with others who are different. One method is to do study abroad or study away opportunities. My partner and I just returned from taking 12 students on a 10 day study abroad in Thailand. Students were immersed in the culture and worked with other students in Thailand on projects. This was a far greater opportunity to learn not only the material but to understand that cultural differences, while important, are second in nature to the attributes we share as human beings. Students didn’t just learn about verbals and nonverbals, they recognized the underlying influences on Thai nonverbal communication and how relevant cultural differences are as well as how to communicate effectively.

Other methods of teaching in this class include community service projects or community engagement. Even as U.S. citizens, we also differ in how we communicate based on age, sex, regionality, class, race, etc. We still have many commonalities. The key to communicating effectively lies in the desire to communicate across differences while acknowledging similarities and respecting difference. Students need to interact and have experiences rather than just reading about these differences or hearing lectures. Students who are engaged often report life changing experiences in the classroom that impact them in ways they never imagined. They don’t expect that learning about others often leads to learning so much more about themselves.

I firmly advocate for experiential learning practices in the classroom. It is necessary to have a foundational knowledge but the practice transforms that knowledge into something much more valuable.

Pamela, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I was a first-generation college student who was a computer programmer before returning to school in my 30s to pursue degrees in classes more related to working with people. Today, I teach courses in Communication Studies in the Scripps College of Communication. I am also an affiliated faculty for the Center for Law, Justice, and Culture. I am a professor of instruction and serve as a fellow in three areas: Collaborative Online International Learning, Experiential Learning, and serve as a fellow facilitator for the Ohio University Inclusive Pedagogy Academy. I hold a doctorate degree in Communication Studies and a graduate certificate in Women’s Studies from Ohio University, a master’s degree in organizational communication and two undergraduate degrees from Murray State University. My primary areas of instructional interest include qualitative research, gendered communication, intercultural communication, and rhetoric. I recently led a study abroad program for students to Thailand with Thai Instructor Pittaya Paladroi-Shane. I have a long history of service to the community and has been instrumental in organizing events, including the Celebrate Women Conference, Women in Technology and Science Day, the Women’s Leadership Summit, Social Justice Week, and other culturally focused activities.
I have received numerous awards. I was presented with the 2019 Regional Higher Education Distinguished Lecturer Award, the 2017 and 2023 Professor of the Year, the International Women’s Day Award from the International Women’s Day Committee, International COIL recognition, and a Social Justice in the Classroom Award. For my service, I am a commissioned Kentucky Colonel, was named an Ambassador of Good Will for the state of Kentucky and the KY Department of Tourism, awarded numerous grants such as the OU John Houk Memorial Research Grant, the Linda Cochran-Breazeale Fellowship from Murray State University, received Senate Citations from Kentucky and Ohio, and an Ambassador Award from the city of Murray.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

I was a computer programmer for about five years but I was very unhappy doing this job because I was so isolated from people. During this time, in my leisure time, I was working to advocate against domestic violence and other gendered forms of violence because i was a survivor of domestic violence. After my divorce I went to school to become a computer programmer. I wanted to do something to help others so I was doing advocacy work to create more awareness about domestic violence. I visited a sociology/criminal justice class to talk to them about domestic violence (at the request of their instructor) because I was a survivor. As I was telling my story, one of the students (male student) raised his hand and started talking about how men wouldn’t be so reactive if women would learn when to shut up because women often pushed me into situations. I was appalled. The professor did not intervene effectively so I had to handle the situation. I realized this class was going to be the future police officers or judges or lawyers. I decided I was an effective (more so) than their teacher so I decided to go back to school to be a professor. I have never been sorry for this change.

How’d you build such a strong reputation within your market?

I believe I have built a reputation because I have always believed in what I’m going and I enjoy what I’m doing. I also am the type of person who likes to work hard and is committed to doing volunteer work for the causes I believe in. I would never ask a student to do something I wasn’t willing to do. I have put years of work into the work I do. My daughter calls me ‘extra’ and I’m sure she doesn’t mean it to be a compliment in some ways but I am proud to be ‘extra’ in the things and areas that are important to me. I am willing to go the extra mile, to do the extra things, and to spend time and resources on the work I do.

Contact Info:

• Facebook: Pamela Kaylor