Biography
Nina DeMare, known as Wen Laoshi (温老师) to her students, has taught the Chinese language at Tulane since 2008. A native of Beijing, she studied at the School of Education in Beijing Normal University before working at the Inter-University Program (IUP) in Qinghua University in Beijing. Her years at IUP, a language training center designed for undergraduates, graduate students, and professionals, cemented her belief in a learner-centered, communicative, and task-based pedagogy. She then obtained her degree in Educational Psychology and Methodology at SUNY Albany. During her time at SUNY Albany, much of her research focused on alternative assessment techniques, which still inform her teaching at Tulane. After coming to Tulane she has taught beginning Chinese I and II, Intermediate II, Advanced I, and Issues in Contemporary China. She also helped develop new courses for high-level students including Chinese Media Literacy and Chinese Literature and Culture.