Marcia Thompson
Marcia
J.
Thompson
Assistant Professor of Physical Therapy

Biography

As a 30 year clinician prior to my transition to academia, I believe that learning becomes meaningful when the sciences and the evidence are linked to a tangible outcome. As a core faculty member with major responsibility for clinical application, I have chosen to bring learning to life with as much integrated client contact as often as feasible within the lab setting. A firm believer in case example, I have found in my classes that the kinesthetic value of even a limited amount of time actually ‘touching’ or ‘feeling’ a patient relative to a particular impairment or construct is of the greatest value. I believe in the power of technology to enhance collaboration and creative application of learning and I have consistently explored innovative and creative methods of instruction and pedagogy in my classroom. I exercise continual self-reflection and demonstrate a flexibility that allows me to make the necessary adjustments to ensure student success both within and between semester activities.

I believe in community partnerships, both within the clinical community and the chronic populations who require our services. I like to engage and facilitate engagement of our students in patient support groups, working to address the needs and concerns of those groups. This results in a culture of mutual support which enables me to call on those groups for volunteerism and participation in instructional support, such as classroom activities, lab practical exams, video case vignettes for use in exams or in labs. This provides rich options for integration of learning within the patient care management courses. I frequently design opportunities for inter-professional collaboration and education for enhanced learning.

In addition, learning is facilitated when you as the educator are predictable and approachable. I essentially believe that our Doctor of Physical Therapy students are emerging new colleagues in the student phase of their career; thus I model professional behaviors and treat them with respect, and I expect professionalism, personal accountability, and respect in return. When their behaviors are not conducive to this relationship, I believe that it is our responsibility as educators to identify potential reasons (culture, ethnicity, life bias or experience) and to facilitate a change rather than apply a behavioral label. I have experiences in teaching first-generation college students and in teaching within a diverse cultural and ethnic environments.

 

Doctor of Physical Therapy Program at Alvernia University is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy (CAPTE), 1111 North Fairfax Street, Alexandria, Virginia 22314; telephone: 703-706-3245; email: accreditation@apta.org; website: http://www.capteonline.org. If needing to contact the program/institution directly, please call 610-568-1546 or email christopher.wise@alvernia.edu.


For more information regarding the process of accreditation, please contact the:

Commission on Accreditation in Physical Therapy Education
1111 North Fairfax Street
Alexandria, VA 22314
Phone: 703-706-3245
Email: accreditation@apta.org