Teaching Philosophy
I believe there is a difference between being "new" at something and being "bad" at something. I have seen many students slowly walk into class, already labeling themselves as "bad" at writing or reading. My first responsibility to my students is to provide the practice grounds for students to move from "new" at a subject, to mastering a subject.
As an instructor, my role is one of co-creator of knowledge. While recognizing I am a specialist in the field I teach, my role is to lead my students to places where both answers and questions alike can be found. Entering the classroom, my job as an instructor is to begin a discussion in which I can be the lead learner. Asking questions of materials read, along with questions which push students to discuss various possibilities, cultivates the spirit of the 21st century classroom: collaboration. Encouraging students to engage in critical thinking and revise their ideas based on classmates' comments and experiences brings the classroom to a place of collective learning and understanding. Effective teaching within the classroom begins with the question.
I strongly believe in catering learning to individuals and as such, drafting, peer review, and revisions are integrated in one way or another to each assignment. This catering is one way I show my students how to individualize learning. My classroom practices reflect this idea: lectures always include small group discussions. Small-group discussions create space for students to listen, value, and respond their peers' opinions while refining their own. Teamwork and collaboration are the transferable skills developed within my classroom that ideally my students leave and apply to all areas of their lives.
Teaching English courses in the 21st century poses unique challenges. Many--if not all--of my students are immersed in technology. I believe integrating technology into the classroom in no way replaces my instruction, but rather enhances my students' experiences with the instruction. From giving students a visual example of what hang-cliff indentation looks like through OWL Purdue, to reading NYTimes opinion editorials and listening to podcasts responding to issues faced today, to listening to a recording of T.S. Eliot himself read "The Wasteland," I have seen students' engagement increase through integration of technology into daily lessons. Showing students how to be conscientious consumers of rhetoric in its various formats is of primary importance in my teaching.
In my own career as a student, I have found the most valuable classes were ones which taught me not what to learn, but how to learn. The classes which prepared me best for the workforce and its dynamic challenges were the ones which taught me to be conscious of my ideas, my strengths and my biases. I believe giving students tools to learn is the key to success in both their education and their future fields of study.
As an instructor, my role is one of co-creator of knowledge. While recognizing I am a specialist in the field I teach, my role is to lead my students to places where both answers and questions alike can be found. Entering the classroom, my job as an instructor is to begin a discussion in which I can be the lead learner. Asking questions of materials read, along with questions which push students to discuss various possibilities, cultivates the spirit of the 21st century classroom: collaboration. Encouraging students to engage in critical thinking and revise their ideas based on classmates' comments and experiences brings the classroom to a place of collective learning and understanding. Effective teaching within the classroom begins with the question.
I strongly believe in catering learning to individuals and as such, drafting, peer review, and revisions are integrated in one way or another to each assignment. This catering is one way I show my students how to individualize learning. My classroom practices reflect this idea: lectures always include small group discussions. Small-group discussions create space for students to listen, value, and respond their peers' opinions while refining their own. Teamwork and collaboration are the transferable skills developed within my classroom that ideally my students leave and apply to all areas of their lives.
Teaching English courses in the 21st century poses unique challenges. Many--if not all--of my students are immersed in technology. I believe integrating technology into the classroom in no way replaces my instruction, but rather enhances my students' experiences with the instruction. From giving students a visual example of what hang-cliff indentation looks like through OWL Purdue, to reading NYTimes opinion editorials and listening to podcasts responding to issues faced today, to listening to a recording of T.S. Eliot himself read "The Wasteland," I have seen students' engagement increase through integration of technology into daily lessons. Showing students how to be conscientious consumers of rhetoric in its various formats is of primary importance in my teaching.
In my own career as a student, I have found the most valuable classes were ones which taught me not what to learn, but how to learn. The classes which prepared me best for the workforce and its dynamic challenges were the ones which taught me to be conscious of my ideas, my strengths and my biases. I believe giving students tools to learn is the key to success in both their education and their future fields of study.