Upper Peninsula Teaching & Learning Conference - 2026

In my engineering statistics and biostatistics courses, I introduced a series of optional extra-credit questions on each homework assignment designed to encourage personal expression—questions such as “Can you teach me a slang word?”, “Who is your idol?”, and “What is your dream job?” Over the semester, I collected more than 120 responses for each question, analyzed the patterns, and discovered insights that surprised me, especially given my East Asian educational background. Students shared humor, creativity, and cultural perspectives that rarely appear in traditional STEM assignments. This presentation explores what these responses reveal about student motivation, identity, and values in an international classroom environment. I will connect the findings to cross-cultural differences in educational expectations and discuss how personal questions can humanize STEM learning, increase engagement, and help instructors understand their students more deeply. The talk concludes with practical suggestions for integrating culturally responsive and relationship-centered strategies into a variety of courses.