My Teaching Philosophy
“Intelligence plus character – that is the goal of true education.”
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Teaching is a tradition in my family. I grew up hearing stories of one and two room schoolhouses and having my grammar repeatedly corrected by well-meaning relatives. I lived vicariously through the books I read - Catherine Marshall's Christy, H.G. Wells' Island of Doctor Moreau. Playtime meant corralling my neighbors into my makeshift schoolroom. At the end of high school, I knew I had only begun to learn, so I enrolled as a biology major in my local university. While sticking my nose into an assortment of courses, I ventured across campus to the education department where I took classes like adolescent development and teaching in a pluralastic society. Since that time as a student, and over the years as a teacher in a variety of venues, I have honed my craft and refined my ability to cultivate learning in my students. It excites me to share the journey of discovery; therefore, I teach.
Learning occurs when students believe they can learn and the subject has meaning. I am part motivational speaker and part salesman. I engage the brain with interesting dialogue, video clips, and hands-on-projects. During this time I make a concerted effort to see the positives and praise successful work habits. My students discover that I will help them learn in a way that they can appriciate and comprehend.
Before I walk into a class to teach, I plan, research, and ruminate, then I plan some more. I visualize the overarching, big picture I want my students to experience. I list all critical skills and knowledge to be acquired by my students during the course of the lesson, giving particular attention to those aspects that are prerequisite for future lessons. From this master plan, I work backwards, creating first assessments, then rubrics, then exercises, and finally lectures and learning activities. With this core structure in place, we are ready to have fun.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Teaching is a tradition in my family. I grew up hearing stories of one and two room schoolhouses and having my grammar repeatedly corrected by well-meaning relatives. I lived vicariously through the books I read - Catherine Marshall's Christy, H.G. Wells' Island of Doctor Moreau. Playtime meant corralling my neighbors into my makeshift schoolroom. At the end of high school, I knew I had only begun to learn, so I enrolled as a biology major in my local university. While sticking my nose into an assortment of courses, I ventured across campus to the education department where I took classes like adolescent development and teaching in a pluralastic society. Since that time as a student, and over the years as a teacher in a variety of venues, I have honed my craft and refined my ability to cultivate learning in my students. It excites me to share the journey of discovery; therefore, I teach.
Learning occurs when students believe they can learn and the subject has meaning. I am part motivational speaker and part salesman. I engage the brain with interesting dialogue, video clips, and hands-on-projects. During this time I make a concerted effort to see the positives and praise successful work habits. My students discover that I will help them learn in a way that they can appriciate and comprehend.
Before I walk into a class to teach, I plan, research, and ruminate, then I plan some more. I visualize the overarching, big picture I want my students to experience. I list all critical skills and knowledge to be acquired by my students during the course of the lesson, giving particular attention to those aspects that are prerequisite for future lessons. From this master plan, I work backwards, creating first assessments, then rubrics, then exercises, and finally lectures and learning activities. With this core structure in place, we are ready to have fun.