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Statement of Teaching Philosophy
An education that teaches you to understand something about the world has done only half of the assignment. The other half is to teach you to do something about making the world a better place. This is a first draft of my teaching philosophy – among other things, I realize that this draft is too long! I would welcome any feedback that readers (especially those of you who have had me in class) are willing to share. In what follows, I've identified the big ideas of my philosophy, and then provided brief descriptions coupled with an example or two of what the philosophy looks like in practice. SpaceParker Palmer (1993) has noted that “to teach is to create space in which the community of truth is practiced” (p. xii). In terms of space, the idea is that teachers should create space, not fill it. I'll be the first to admit that I'm not always as effective as I'd like to be at creating space. For example, too often I respond to student questions instead of reflecting them back to the class; or else I create space effectively, only to fill it quickly once students begin filling it themselves with answers that I do not like. That said, my teaching has been most effective when I've focused on creating space and not filling it. In terms of putting this into practice, I try to utilize case studies, learning activities, and thought experiments whenever possible. When I use lectures, I try to limit their length and approach them as structured or facilitated dialogues. In terms of assignments, I avoid busy work and design assignments that I believe create space and require students to think. Community and RelationshipsTruth be told, those moments when I've been most effective at teaching were really moments when we, as a class, we were effective at teaching and learning. Learning requires that participants trust one another. It requires that all participants are honest, open, and willing to take risks. In most situations, I believe that failing an assignment or a course reflects the breakdown of a relationship more than the inability of the student to be successful. There is a danger here: relationships can become so close that learning suffers. This is not always a bad thing, but one should ultimately measure the effectiveness of the student-teacher relationship in terms of learning, not the relationship itself. I try to put this to practice in a number of ways. Though not as strong with names as my father, I do work hard to learn students' names quickly. I also work hard to make myself available to students outside of class, both in terms of coursework and in terms of other professional or personal issues. When possible, I try to open my home to students once a year so that they can see me in a different setting with my wife and children. High Standards for LearningI work hard to set high standards for learning and to challenge students. In terms of course evaluations, students consistently report that the standards I set are well above average. I believe that earning an A+ may represent mastery, but it rarely demonstrates learning since we learn in large part through our mistakes. The danger, of course, is that mistakes can be frustrating—too many mistakes can impede the learning process. Stated differently, using rigor for the sake of rigor is not an effective teaching practice. We learn from our mistakes only by critically considering them in safe learning environments. In practice, I develop assignments that I believe are challenging, yet achievable. My goal is to surprise students with just how much they can achieve when they put their minds to it. I set the standard for an A quite high—an assignment that met or exceeded all of the stated requirements. An A+ marks an assignment that went well beyond these requirements; I reserve perfect scores for assignment that I believe are, well, perfect. On the other end of the spectrum, I try to design assignments so that students learn through the very process of completing the assignment. Thus, a C grade represents some manifestation of a student not completing the assignment, whether in terms of thought or effort. An F most often represents an academic integrity problem. AssessmentStudents invest a great deal of their time and money into the classes they take, so they have a right to realize the course objectives in their own lives. Further, they have a right to receive an honest and fair assessment of how well they have achieved these objectives. One cannot reduce such an assessment to a simple letter grade at the end of a paper or course. I put this commitment to assessment into practice in three important ways. First, I provide detailed sets of expectations for assignments in course syllabi. That said, I try to not provide so much detail that it stifles student creativity. Second, I work hard to provide prompt and detailed feedback to students on their assignments. I also try to integrate resources for improvement into my evaluative comments. Finally, I apply assessment principles to my own teaching. One example is an activity that I often use after the first several weeks of class. I ask a volunteer to take notes while the class discusses my strengths and potential growth areas as an instructor. I then step out of the class for twenty minutes or so. The dynamics of the student comments resemble that of a focus group, yet retain the anonymity necessary for students to be forthright. Ownership for LearningI often begin my classes by noting that the students in the room are paying to take the course while I am being paid to teach it. Students are the consumer in this equation—it is my job to do everything in my power to help students get the most for their money. I believe that this approach fits well with my approach to leadership (servant leadership), as well as with movements in critical theory and postmodernism. In terms of practice, I've frequently worked with students to adapt or change assignments for a class. Since they can personalize assignments to their work environments and in light of assignments they've completed for other courses, students can often identify better means to achieve the course objectives than those that I have designed. Critical Thinking & Powerful IdeasI refuse to reduce learning to content mastery. We live in an era of change and the content mastered today will be outdated tomorrow. Thus, learning is more about theories and ideas than facts and laws—contemporary models of learning focus more on learning how to travel, so to speak, than reaching a destination. In this light, I greatly appreciate James Banks' concept of teaching with powerful ideas. Instead of designing courses around ever-growing bodies of content, one should select the powerful ideas of the course as a starting point. When teaching history, for example, it may be more valuable to develop robust lesson plans around a handful of major historical events than to try to teaching all the points on the timeline. In this light, I place a great deal of emphasis on critical thinking. In class, I will often play the role of the devil's advocate to help students consider multiple perspectives. I also frequently use role-playing exercises. When assessing assignments, I place high value on analysis and synthesis, evaluation, consideration of multiple perspectives, and voice. I also frequently use final exams in my courses. When I do so, I write specific lesson plans for the design and administration of the final—my goal is for students to learn more about the powerful ideas of the course through the completion of the final. SystemsEverything that we do teaches something. This is true for both that which occurs inside the classroom and those things that occur outside of class. Further, the danger of hypocrisy is acute. If I were to advocate the use of autocratic leadership and coercive power in class, and then model that to students when I assign grades or as I participate in the broader university community, I would cause limited danger. Some students may buy into this system, but there is at least a reasonable chance that students will identify the oppressive nature of this approach on their own. However, if I were teach the value of participatory and empowering leadership, though remain autocratic and coercive in my work beyond the classroom, I would do much more to reinforce the oppressive power of the system. At best, students might interpret that I truly believe in empowerment, but realize that one must wield power to be truly successful. At worst, students would perceive my efforts as a part of an oppressive structure, and that would likely be an accurate assessment. Taking it to the StreetsAt the top of this philosophy statement, I began with the words of Johnnetta B. Cole: “ An education that teaches you to understand something about the world has done only half of the assignment. The other half is to teach you to do something about making the world a better place.” In this sense, I draw upon foundation of pragmaticism, or better yet, of critical postmodernism. Knowing and doing must be interconnected concepts. I put this to practice in a number of ways. At the most basic level, I encourage students to use cases or projects from their work environments in the assignments they complete. I often model assignments after the requirements for a conference presentation or poster session; at times I have even required students to submit their conference proposals as an assignment. In terms of writing, I expect students to submit papers in the same format that they would use when submitting a manuscript to a journal—I have even required students to include the cover letter that they might send to an editor when submitting such a manuscript. Ultimately, my desire is for students to take their learning to the streets and make a difference in the world.
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