1. Statement of Teaching Philosophy
Overview
My philosophy of teaching is based on the belief that all students are unique and learn in different ways. As a
teacher, it is my responsibility to create a stimulating atmosphere where all of my students can learn and grow.
I am committed to using a differentiated approach to scholarship and teaching, and I would design a course
with this in mind. My goal is to cultivate an interactive environment where students can engage with the
material and each other. I emphasize critical thinking and the need to consider multiple points of view.
Methodology
I believe that as future educators and school administrators, my students need to be prepared to handle the
rigors of the classroom and school environment. With this in mind, I believe in designing a course where my
students are challenged to take charge of their own learning. As facilitator, it is my responsibility to allow my
students the freedom to seek out information, not to provide it to them. When planning for a course, I first
develop the objectives for the course and then a rational for each objective. Within the course plan, I
emphasize critical thinking skills and collaborative learning. I am a firm believer that we learn best when we
actually teach others, therefore a main component of any course I teach would be to have my students
prepare and teach lessons to the rest of the class. In addition, I believe in creating a classroom environment
that promotes exciting and stimulating discussions on various educational issues. These discussions should
be student lead and should address the diversity and interests of my adult learners.
Assessment
As I mentioned above, I believe that all students learn is different ways so my assessment tools must reflect
that. To measure student learning, I would rely on various methods which would include: collaborative
projects, scholarly research projects, article reviews, lesson planning and presentations, traditional
quizzes/exams, chapter summaries and process analysis papers. In addition, I firmly believe that as
educators, my students must utilize the latest technology in their own lessons. Therefore, I would require a
technology component to any formal presentation done in class. As any quality educator knows, however,
summative assessments, that I mentioned above, only tell part of what a student has learned. Much of what a
student truly has grasped comes during the process of teaching and learning. Therefore, I also believe in
incorporating formative assessment techniques into my lessons such as: one minute papers, informal
discussion, peer/self evaluations and mini-quizzes. Formative assessment not only allows me to informally
assess students during the learning process, but it also allows the students to gain a better understanding of
how they are progressing through the course. In addition, formative assessment is also a valuable tool to help
me understand what teaching techniques are most effective.
Summary
Ultimately, it is my assertion that students learn best in an environment where they are challenged. Students
should come to a classroom where they have the opportunity to interact with the material, react to each other
and receive feedback from the professor. Course materials should be current and relevant to the subject
matter. Striving for excellence should be the norm not the exception. Finally, since complacency is the
hallmark of an ineffective teacher, my philosophy of teaching is one which asserts that I must always strive
for ways to improve my instruction.