I have been teaching for 20 years now, and while my repertoire of teaching methodologies has expanded greatly during that time, my core philosophy on teaching has not changed much at all. My stance on teaching is greatly influenced by my identity as a learner.
As a child (and still as a adult) I was always the one with a book in my hand. I read voraciously, everything I could find, I was non-discriminatory. Literature, science, the encyclopedia, news articles – anything that captured my attention. For my entrance exam to middle school I choose creative writing – I hoped and prayed one day to be a writer (little did I realize it would happen, just not in the manner I thought). My back-up was testing in mathematics. As you can guess, I ended up in “math talent,” NOT my first choice! But I went with it, and enjoyed the learning and the beauty to be found in the field.
The point of this rambling story is to emphasize my appreciation for range, an appreciation which has served me well as a learner and now, as an educator. I strongly believe our students should be encouraged to BOTH learn broadly and choose an area to specialize in. One does not need to be at the expense of the other, nor does one need to happen before the other. The most successful inventors have innovated by applying a method or idea they learned from a completely unrelated field. Learning broadly allows one to have context and perspective, with experiences and strategies to pull from when navigating life and work. Specializing allows one to go deep into a field in a focused manner and acquire skills and background knowledge necessary to operate at a high level. I feel that our lives can (and should) support many cycles of specialization along with broader study.
This is why in practice as an educator, my responsibilities to my students extend beyond the basic presentation of the course material. I feel it is my obligation to convey not just the course content (with stress on the conceptual) but as much as possible regarding the history of the topic, the key players responsible, how the content is important in the real world and how the skills learned in the class translate to their future educational and professional careers. All of this hinges on accessibility. Students need to have access to resources in order to support this type of learning which is why I’m a strong supporter in open pedagogies and free online texts and utilized them heavily.
I strive to inspire my students to take control of their educational and professional careers. I believe it imperative for students to gain a particular kind of self-awareness. Students should not gloss over skills in which they are lacking but should instead take note of areas in which they can improve. This is an important step in the process of building a strong skill set.
As human beings we have the unique ability to communicate our knowledge, to preserve it via language, and thus, to build upon it. This process hinges upon our communications skills. A theory is useless (no matter how brilliant) if its originator is not able to communicate it. I believe an essential building block of a strong education is not just the acquisition of knowledge, but the communication of it in a clear, organized fashion. The form of this communication is being increasingly influenced by technology and so it is important for us as students and educators to adapt accordingly.
Many factors are at play as student’s journey through their semester. The process of learning is a highly personal one, and yet, at times, we all share common experiences. In addition to their classwork, students must juggle family and work responsibilities. Many suffer from fear of failure, feelings of inadequacy and isolation. I feel it is vital as an educator to be sensitive to these obstacles. It is most critical at the remedial level, as students face the challenge of transitioning from secondary education to higher education. This has spurred my collaborative efforts to improve success rates at the developmental level.
Assisting students in building soft competences such as self respect, professionalism, a positive work ethic and a sense of civic engagement are just a few of the skills I strive to help my students cultivate. It is my belief that the building of soft competences helps to combat feelings of negativity toward the learning process.
I feel it is important to have certain standards when teaching mathematics. It is important for universities to expect a certain level of mathematical expertise from their graduates. I feel that it is essential to the future development of this country and its educational system. Many of my students are severely lacking in basic skills which is both frightening and discouraging. We as educators must take on this responsibility and accept the challenge of helping students in need.
I believe that we begin our lives and education with an empty toolbox. Every fact, theorem and method we learn is a tool that we can place in our toolbox. By the end of their undergraduate education, I hope my students have a very heavy toolbox with which to build their careers and their futures.
