Dr. Dougal teaches courses in eighteenth- and nineteenth-century British literature, nineteenth-century American literature, and the study of poetry. She has also taught courses on travel writing and women's diaries, reflecting her scholarly interest in life writing and in the intersection between gender and genre. Dr. Dougal serves as the advisor to English majors earning their degree through the Division of Continuing Studies. Dr. Dougal is advisor to the Zinzendorf Literary Society. In the 1999-2000 academic year, Dr. Dougal won the Lindback Teaching Award and the Golden Apple Award for leadership and excellence in teaching.

"I am always seeing myself in my students. Different students, different aspects of myself, from various stages of my life. So in every classroom situation I try to imagine how I would be perceiving the event, as a learner, and I adjust my tactic accordingly. I am particularly sensitive to the need to create an environment in which all students feel comfortable sharing their responses to the material at hand. If I can make what I teach seem relevant to my students, then they are more likely to become enthusiastic about the literature we read together, its beauty and the human truths it evokes and reveals. I find that students are particularly open to reading a wide variety of both canonical and noncanonical works of literature, so together we push the boundaries, examining the writings of people of different races, classes, ethnicities, genders. My research on women's diaries and travel writing has enhanced my teaching by increasing my own appreciation for writers and genres that have only recently been acknowledged and valued."