Peter Newbury Center for Teaching Development, UCSD ctd.ucsd.edu 11 December 2013

1. slides and resources: ctd.ucsd.edu/programs/fall-2013-weekly-workshops/
CTD WEEKLY WORKSHOPS:
WRITING A SUCCESSFUL
TEACHING STATEMENT
Peter Newbury
Center for Teaching Development,
University of California, San Diego
pnewbury@ucsd.edu
@polarisdotca
ctd.ucsd.edu
#ctducsd
Wednesday, December 11, 2013
12:00 – 12:50 pm Center Hall, Room 316

2. End of grad school/postdoc = stress!
2
visa/immigration publish thesis in journal
thesis job search
moving
defense
funding/grants
Research Statement
Teaching Statement
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement
CV
references

3. Job announcements
3
Most job announcements require applicants to submit a
“Teaching Statement”
http://academicaffairs.ucsd.edu/aps/adeo/recruitment
/jobdetails.asp?PositionNumber=10-592
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

4. “A Teaching what ?”
4
Teaching Portfolio
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

5. Purpose of a Teaching Portfolio
5
 Collect in one place all your evidence of teaching
 teaching philosophy
 teaching statement
 evaluations (like CAPE)
 examples of your work: slide deck, assignments,
exams
 Feedback from students, colleagues, bosses
 start collecting NOW
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

6. “A Teaching what ?”
6
Teaching Portfolio
Teaching Philosophy
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

7. Purpose of a Teaching Philosophy
7
 Thesis statement for a broader teaching portfolio
 Helps tie together and synthesize evidences
 Demonstrate that you are reflective about
your teaching
 Communicate your goals and actions
 As you revise, it may shape how you teach
 Help you set goals for professional growth
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

8. “A Teaching what ?”
8
Teaching Portfolio
Teaching Philosophy
Teaching
Statement
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement
also known as…
• Statement of Teaching
• Statement of Teaching
Philosophy
• and more…

9. Purpose of a Teaching Statement
9
 Be hired in your desired position
 Demonstrate that you are reflective about
your teaching
 Communicate your goals and actions
 Thesis statement for a broader teaching portfolio, if
one will be included in your application
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

10. A Teaching Statement gives…
cft.vanderbilt.edu/teaching-guides/reflecting/teaching-statements/
10
 Your conception of how learning occurs
 A description of how your teaching facilitates learning
 A reflection of why you teach the way you do
 The goals you have for yourself and for your students
 How your teaching enacts your beliefs and goals
 What, for you, constitutes evidence of student learning
 The ways in which you create an inclusive learning
environment
 Your interests in new techniques, activities, and types of
learning
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

11. Vanderbilt CfT Teaching Statement in
wordle, with keywords only
11
http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/5884593/Teacing_Statement_content_from_Vander
Writingbilt_CfT_-_keywords_only
a Successful Teaching Statement

12. Vanderbilt CfT Teaching Statement in
wordle, all words
12
http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/5884639/Teaching_Statement_content_from_Vande
rbilt_CfT_-_all_words
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

13. Example - Linguistics
Count the
number of I,
me, my,…
www.crlt.umich.edu/tstrategies/tstpum
13
I hope to engender in my students the same enthusiasm for the study
of language that I possess myself, and to foster an interest in linguistics that
motivates them to consider further study. In my classes, I create a relaxed and
stimulating learning environment that attempts to build relationships that
close the ‘gap’ between teacher and student, thus ensuring my students are
comfortable sharing their thoughts, knowledge and experiences. I aim to both
encourage critical thinking about the complexities of language and its daily
use, and to help students develop analytical and argumentative skills, even
in an Introduction to Linguistics class. These are skills I believe will serve them
well, complementing the content knowledge needed to be a successful linguist,
regardless of whether these skills are ultimately applied within the field.
When I am instructor of record at the University of California, San Diego, I
use peer instruction with clickers and portable whiteboards to support a
flipped classroom in which prepared students actively engage with the
content and skills and with their peers, an approach that enables students to
reach detailed learning outcomes specified at the beginning of the course.
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

14. 14
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

15. How do I get all this…into that?
15
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement
LEGO image: wrenfieldrambling.blogspot.com
Shuttle image: itsfullofstars.tumblr.com

16. Step 1
16
sit and think
Just a thought Teaching Statement
Writing a Successful by gintoxin78 on flickr (CC)
Step 1
sit and think

17. Discussion question
17
Which of these do you feel is your primary role as an
educator?
A) Teaching students facts and principles of the subject
B) Helping students develop basic learning skills
C) Helping students develop higher-order thinking skills
D) Preparing students for jobs/careers
E) Being a role model for students
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

18. Teaching Goals Inventory (Excerpt)
© 1993 Thomas A. Angelo and K. Patricia Cross.
tinyurl.com/TeachingGoalsInventory
Please rate the importance of each of the […] goals listed below to the specific course you have selected. Assess each goal's
importance to what you deliberately aim to have your students accomplish, rather than the goal's general worthiness or overall
importance to your institution's mission. There are no “right” or “wrong” answers; only personally more or less accurate ones.
Indicate whether each goal you rate is:
(1) not applicable
(2) unimportant
(3) important
(4) very important
(5) essential
– a goal you never try to achieve
– a goal you rarely try to achieve
– a goal you sometimes try to achieve
– a goal you often try to achieve
– a goal you always/nearly always try to achieve
(1) (2) (3) (4) (5)
Goal
    
17. Improve mathematical skills
    
18. Learn terms and facts of this subject
    
19. Learn concepts and theories in this subject
    
20. Develop skill in using materials, tools, and/or technology central to this subject
    
21. Learn to understand perspectives and values of this subject
    
22. Prepare for transfer or graduate study
    
23. Learn techniques and methods used to gain new knowledge in this subject
    
24. Learn to evaluate methods and materials in this subject
    
25. Learn to appreciate important contributions to this subject
    
26. Develop an appreciation of the liberal arts and sciences
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement
ctd.ucsd.edu
Center for Teaching Development, UCSD

19. General Guidelines
cft.vanderbilt.edu/teaching-guides/reflecting/teaching-statements/
19
 Make your Teaching Statement brief and well
written, typically 1-2 pages in length.
 Use narrative, first-person approach. This allows the
Teaching Statement to be both personal and
reflective.
 Be sincere and unique. Avoid clichés, especially ones
about how much passion you have for teaching.
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

20. General Guidelines
cft.vanderbilt.edu/teaching-guides/reflecting/teaching-statements/
20
 Make it specific rather than abstract. Ground your
ideas in 1-2 concrete examples, whether
experienced or anticipated. This will help the reader
to better visualize you in the classroom.
 Be discipline specific. Do not ignore your research.
Explain how you advance your field through
teaching.
 Avoid jargon and technical terms, as they can be
off-putting to some readers.
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

21. General Guidelines
cft.vanderbilt.edu/teaching-guides/reflecting/teaching-statements/
21
 Try not to simply repeat what is in your CV. Teaching
Statements are not exhaustive documents and should
be used to complement other materials for the hiring
or tenure processes.
 Be humble. Mention students in an enthusiastic, not
condescending way, and illustrate your willingness to
learn from your students and colleagues.
 Revise. Teaching is an evolving, reflective process,
and Teaching Statements can be adapted and
changed as necessary.
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

22. General Guidelines
22
 Customize for the Department you’re applying to:
“I would be excited to teach introductory courses
like your MATH 10A and MATH 20B.”
“With my research background, I would be able
to teach graduate-level courses in European
history like HIST 554.”
 Remove UCSD-specific acronyms like UCSD, CAPE,
SIO, SE, MAE, HIEU, SSPPS,…
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

23. General Guidelines
23
 Formatting: do everything you can to make it easy
for the hiring committee members to read your doc:
 Add a header with your name, so that the reader
can easily associate your awesome words with
your name
 full justification gives your doc a polished look
 check your PDF very carefully for .docx to .pdf
conversion problems (esp. with bullet points)
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

24. KEY Guideline:
24
 You need a kick a** opening paragraph!
 What
distinguishes you from everyone else applying?
 Why will the hiring committee remember your teaching
statement? Give them something to remember you by!
 Imagine the hiring committee only reads the 1st
paragraph carefully and skims the rest. Hit ‘em with
your best stuff right away – don’t save it for the
concluding paragraph.
 It’s okay to spend extra (way too much) time on the 1st
paragraph – it could get you (or cost you) the job
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

25. First paragraph rubric:
Write, rubric, revise, rubric, revise…
25
Weak
description of teaching experience
candidate stands out
format, layout, rhetoric, language
“Who’s this again?”
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement
Acceptable
Strong

26. Five major components (Chism, 1998)
www.crlt.umich.edu/tstrategies/tstpts
26
1. Conceptualization of learning
How do people learn?
2. Conceptualization of teaching
How do I facilitate that learning?
3. Goals for students
Content and skills
4. Implementation of philosophy
What do I do in the classroom? Does it work?
5. Professional growth plan
How have I grown, and how will I grow in the future?
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

27. Teaching Statement rubric:
Write, rubric, revise, rubric, revise…
27
Excellent
Needs
Work
www.crlt.umich.edu/tstrategies/tstpts
Goals for student learning
Enactment of goals (teaching method)
Assessment of goals (measuring student learning)
Creating an inclusive learning environment
Structure, rhetoric and language
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement
Weak

28. You’ve drafted it. Now what?
28
1. Ask someone you trust IN YOUR DISCIPLINE to read it.

Their familiarity with the subject may catch errors
specific to your field (eg, field work in geophysics)
2. Ask someone you trust NOT in your discipline to read it.
 When
they ask you what something means, it forces you
to think carefully and concisely about the concept.
 People beyond the hiring-Department (eg, Faculty Dean)
may read it
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement

29. Resources
29
 Center for Research on Learning and Teaching
University of Michigan
www.crlt.umich.edu/tstrategies/tstpts
Teaching statement samples: www.crlt.umich.edu/tstrategies/tstpum
 Center for Teaching
Vanderbilt University
cft.vanderbilt.edu/teaching-guides/reflecting/teaching-statements/
 McGraw Center for Teaching and Learning
Princeton University
www.princeton.edu/mcgraw/library/for-grad-students/teaching-statement
 Center for the Advancement of Teaching
Ohio State University
ucat.osu.edu/teaching_portfolio/philosophy/philosophy2.html
 Center for Teaching Development
University of California, San Diego
ctd.ucsd.edu
Writing a Successful Teaching Statement