Happy Thursday, all! Today I wanted to share with you all my (working) draft of my teaching philosophy. I composed the majority of this draft in December 2010, but I’ve made a few updates since. I was told by my supervisor that teaching philosophies are living, breathing documents that change and grow with your teaching, and I’ve definitely found that to be true. If you’re an aspiring teacher (like me!), I hope that this document will serve as inspiration for your own philosophy. I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments! So, here goes:
My central goal as an instructor of composition and introductory literature is to foster in each student writer an appreciation for writing within an academic discourse, as well as to equip each student with the ability to communicate clearly and convincingly through the written word, a skill that is transferable across the academic disciplines and spans the gamut of career fields. I also ask students to both think and write critically about how literature gives us an opportunity to learn about other cultures through story, as story often reflects the customs, values, morals and beliefs of a given culture.
I begin each semester by working to empower my students to realize that their lives are bursting with stories waiting to be written, and that these stories can be effectively told to illustrate an impact to a larger culture. It is for this reason that I begin each semester with a personal narrative exercise, whether or not this activity transforms into a full-length essay. For Cade*, a former student who wrote about gaining skills in auto-body work through many a night spent as a child huddled with his father under the hood of a car, he gained confidence in his writing by recalling a vivid memory in his past and demonstrating the larger cultural importance of familial bonding and the acquisition of life skills, like changing a tire.
From this basis of understanding, I then move to introduce my students to the “hows and whys” of writing within the academic discourse. I find that the academic discourse parallels that of the business world, in the respect that clear, argumentative writing, composed with a solid foundation of evidence and support, represents an effective approach to correspondence and to achieving both smaller- and larger-scale goals in the world of business. I encouraged Matteo*, a former student who plans to enter the medical field, to treat a research-based argument essay as an exercise in educating himself about various facets of the medical field. Matteo composed an essay that effectively argued for reform in the world of medical malpractice insurance, an examination that is transferable into his career field of interest.
Finally, I choose literature representing multiple perspectives and agendas in hopes to improve cultural awareness and promote understanding among the diverse cultures and subject positions represented in my classes. In teaching at a research university located in a state with a robust American Indian population, the inclusion of multicultural perspectives is all the more important. I challenge students to examine literature for its ability to transcend country, nation, and culture, offering messages or themes that speak not merely to what it means to be Nigerian, Chinese, or American Indian, but what it means to be human. Furthermore, I emphasize to students each semester the importance of respecting their peers and of learning from the contributions of others to discussions, a task that is all the more important when reading texts that encompass and illustrate ethnic, sexual, ability and economic difference. Respect for the origin of ideas and knowledge is also non-negotiable in my classroom. I hold student writing accountable to the standards of the university in terms of emphasizing to the students the supreme importance of academic integrity in writing.
I utilize a variety of methods in teaching my courses, spanning from group work to instructor presentations and interactive lectures. I also have utilized technology in the form of a blog aimed to engage students in thinking about the literary works that we are reading in class, and to provide inspiration for the major essays that students write each semester. I assess student writing through a variety of approaches, yet my feedback primarily stems from the detailed grading rubrics that I provide to my students. In order for students to continue to progress toward competency in writing within an academic discourse, I also feel that individual conferences, scheduled at least three times per semester, help students to understand not simply the fact that they are making progress, but when and how they are improving as writers. Furthermore, in these conferences, I work to simultaneously inform students of strategies that they can utilize to ensure that their writing continues to improve.
I am still developing my pedagogy, adjusting to new challenges, investigating new ways to incorporate technology, and responding to the concerns of students. As a first-generation college student myself, I understand the challenges that many students face in adapting to college life, and in learning to write within the academic discourse. It is in emphasizing the transferable nature of academic writing to the multitude of academic disciplines and career fields that I find that my students are able to feel empowered and competent in writing with vigor and respect in diverse contexts.
* Names have been changed.
