Teaching Philosophy

“In a completely rational society, the best of us would be teachers and the rest of us would have to settle for something else.”

—Lee Iacocca

The above quote sums up my philosophy on teaching. Whether it is in a formal setting (ala classroom) or more informal – for example a parent showing their child how to eat properly – education is the backbone of any society.

On top of that, I believe that making learning both fun and relatable is important to the student’s growth. One important way is that I do my best to establish an atmosphere of trust and rapport, so the students feel comfortable approaching me for any assistance they need (or if they simply wish to relate something they saw on a news site about a topic we just covered, that’s always fun!). I make every effort to keep my style “laid back”, and while that may rub some of the more serious students the wrong way initially, it is my hope that everybody walks away from the course knowing at least a little more than when they entered. Humor is one of my biggest allies, and I attempt to integrate jokes (both amazing and groan-inducingly awful) into the lessons as well as use popular memes with scientific twists to help hammer home some of these ideas. It has seemed somewhat successful, with many of those aforementioned ‘serious’ students even coming around by the end of the course once they realize that when it comes to the actual material at hand, I am not joking!

It’s not 100%, but, we can’t please everybody, right?

Another important way this can be accomplished is through integration of current technological abilities such as computers, tablets, phones, the world wide web (didn’t think that term was still used, did you?), apps, videos, and anything the students of today can use to expand beyond standard lecture/listen/sleep classes.

I have already integrated tech such as WebCampus and it’s myriad of available tools (Quizzes/Exams, Discussions, Announcements, Gradebooks, Collaboration, Peer Review, etc), polling tools, and most recently, introductory videos for some of the more difficult topics. However, I am aiming to completely overhaul my course the next semester, should I be lucky enough to get to teach another one. I am looking into flipping classes so the material is online (i.e. videos, lectures, tests and quizzes) and the class itself would be used for discussion of the tougher-to-grasp concepts for the students. I already schedule group study sessions for my classes with me answering any questions they may have. While tutoring and outside help really can be a boon to these students, getting responses direct from the person who’s exams one has to pass can also be beneficial. These are done in-person, although I have had Skype sessions with some students who live out of town and/or have scheduling conflicts.

I will always do my best to make certain every one of my students succeeds in my course. I will also be there for any of them who reach out to me after our class is over if they ever require assistance. This is my dream job, and I wish to be the best I can at it!