#  October 2024 Teacher-Scholar Spotlight: Cana F. McGhee 

 





October 01, 2024

 

 

   ![Teacher Scholar Spotlight Logo 2024-25.png](/sites/g/files/omnuum6756/files/styles/hwp_1_1__360x360_scale/public/shadowbok/files/screenshot_2024-07-23_at_1.38.09_pm.png?itok=62USowdG) 

 

*Welcome to the newest edition of our Teacher-Scholar Spotlight, illuminating PhD students’ insights on teaching and learning! Each month we’ll share the experiences of PhD students who have engaged in Bok Center programming and what they’ve learned about and from teaching.*

***Cana F. McGhee, G6 in Music***

**Summarize your research in 2 sentences.**

I research different ways that plants are treated as musical and sonic beings, ranging from the prevalence of scent-rich gardens in 19th century French art song to plant mom culture on social media. As I work across musicology, history of science, and the environmental humanities, I reveal how these "botanical musicalities" encourage alternative ways of communing with nonhuman life and attuning to multispecies environments.

**What have you learned from teaching?**

I know more than I think I know: or, put another way, I have learned that teaching does not require full knowledge of a subject in order to be fruitful. Teaching, at least in humanities disciplines, is more about providing a space for students to ask complex questions about nuanced topics without easy answers. My teaching practice showed me that class moves more smoothly when I am present with student questions, curiosities, and energies on a given day. I have also learned the value of clear communication and just being up front with your expectations: it's a valuable lesson outside of the classroom, as well.

**How did you get involved with the Bok Center?**

When I applied to graduate school, I was nervous about teaching for the first time. One of the then-current Harvard students encouraged me to make the most of Bok Center resources like seminars, pursuing the Bok Teaching Certificate, and getting their feedback on professional statements. I'm so glad I followed through!

**What is something you learned in a Bok Seminar that you’ll use in the future?**

I really enjoyed the discussion-leading seminar and have used many of those tactics in both teaching and presentation contexts. I continue to think about the idea of teaching with a closed mouth and open ears, and it helps me remember that the less I speak at the beginning of a section, the more students take the lead in making their own discoveries. I also frequently used the [section planning document](https://docs.google.com/document/d/1hrGl1JZjkggg7VijiOe_nJGvFSqe5iw3EKeYERY__AM/edit?usp=sharing) less as a script, but more for making myself aware of priorities for each week before I generate discussion questions and in-class exercises.

**What would you say to PhD students about why they should get involved with the Bok Center?**

The Bok Center is one of the rare spaces on campus that allows you to interface with folks outside of your discipline over shared anxieties around teaching. This is important especially because it can feel hard to talk about it with advisers and with our department-mates, and having a more neutral space to workshop concerns is super helpful. Bok Seminars are so rewarding because we often work together to find solutions and develop strategies. Because of that sense of community, I'm still friends with some of those colleagues several years later!

**What’s a fun fact about yourself?**

I'm planning to run the Paris Marathon in 2025 (my first full marathon) while I’m there doing archival research!

*Have you been working with the Bok Center this year? Do you want to be featured in the Teacher-Scholar spotlight?* [*Fill out this form*](https://airtable.com/appbhk7Xa02egXf1k/shrgrcAzxcRjad8kG) *and we’ll be in touch!*



 

 

 



 

 See also:- [ Graduate Students ](/audience/graduate-students)
- [ International Teachers and Scholars ](/audience/international-instructors)
- [ Bok News ](/news-items/bok-news)
- [ Teacher-Scholar Spotlight ](/news-items/teacher-scholar-spotlight)
 
 

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