Teaching Philosophy: Values and Methods
Notebooks do not an education make.
- S.S. Pratt
Through my seventeen years of teaching, with students at various levels, several themes emerge. I aim to help students experience the world more richly, beyond the world of textbooks and inert facts, guiding and supporting them towards becoming:
- Reflective practitioners
- who think independently and learn how to learn for themselves
- who creatively consider how things might be otherwise (through habits of posing questions, examining assumptions, exploring alternative perspectives)
- who assess evidence critically
- Collaborative thinkers
- who exhibit good listening and analytical/sympathetic reading skills
- who share their ideas and support others in developing their own ideas
- Effective communicators
- who can write and speak effectively and convey information visually
- who can organize their thoughts and reasoning and contextualize their messages
- Persons who appreciate diverse subject matter
- who appreciate (in the sense of understand) significant concepts
- who appreciate (in the sense of value) their new knowledge and its context(s)
- who appreciate (in both senses) high standards of quality
My courses in history and philosophy of science, biology, ethics, and technology and society are all occasions to develop these themes with different foci and varying levels of sophistication. I teach students. I teach teachers. I teach myself.
According to non-majors (mostly in large classes), my primary strengths as a teacher are: interesting classes or lectures, enthusiasm, level of knowledge, and organization. Other notable features include: use of visuals and discussions and an open, productive student-teacher relationship. A healthy percentage comment on the intellectual challenge and my emphasis on concepts or higher levels of understanding ("he forced me to think"). Students in smaller classes also value my careful written feedback and guidance on writing/reading/thinking skills.
From my own perspective as a veteran teacher, I would underscore further distinctive strengths: careful curriculum design to guide development of thinking skills; active, project-based learning (where possible); team-structured work; formative evaluation on written work; questions to motivate intellectual work; and respect for students as whole persons (one student in a class of 70 exclaimed, "he remembered our names!").
My academic work in history and philosophy of science is an important resource. First, I apply the norm of "sensitive," contextual interpretation in historical research to view learning from student perspectives, including both cognitive and motivational elements. Second, study of episodes of conceptual change in history suggest generally how discovery and learning occur-and resonate with current pedagogical models. Finally, for specific concepts I turn to history to understand naive perspectives and key intellectual transitions, borrowing or adapting the history in planning lessons. Sometimes, explicit historical case studies or scenarios are effective vehicles in the classroom. The "formula" for my practice might thus be summarized:
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I regard all students as discoverers of new facts, rather than as receptacles for memorizing previously developed knowledge. The text is not the authority; rather, it is the reasoning from evidence and new investigations. Thus, I model reasoning in lectures, small-group activities and whole-class discussions.
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I focus on building on what students already know and on revising what they misconceive (including diagnosing their preconceptions and prior knowledge.)
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I focus on relevant concrete examples that perturb or disrupt prior student conceptions and that motivate the process of learning or discovery. I devote considerable time to posing questions or framing problems. I construct an affectively supportive environment that promotes student involvement in learning.
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As noted above, I borrow from or adapt intellectual history as a guide.
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I organize classes to capitalize on differences in individual student strengths and backgrounds (e.g., teams, moderated discussions). At the same time I frame evaluation individually to promote students in developing their own knowledge.
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Where possible, I offer forums for students to demonstrate what they have learned, rather than measure them against a narrow, teacher-determined standard. I aim towards "authentic assessment," asking students to convey their knowledge in applied or "real-life" contexts.
In preparing classes, I draw on a large repertoire of perspectives, considering: the rhythms of the semester; how classroom architecture and seating shapes student interaction; the theatrical "spectacle" of dramatic openings and closings; relevance to students, including local and timely examples; plain language (introducing new terms socratically); different learning styles and varied class activities; how students' attitudes and emotions affect learning; how students' lives outside the classroom affect their learning; how learning, conversely, can affect students' lives outside the classroom; and the role of student choice in "owning" their education. Then I gather energy for an engaging, interactive classroom presence.
An old Chinese proverb says, "a teacher for a day is like a parent for a lifetime." My students are my academic "children," and when they grow intellectually I value my part in contributing to that growth.