Teaching Philosophy

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  As a teacher, I strive to help students find a passion for writing and for literature.  By using creativity to develop exciting learning experiences, embedding flexibility into assignments, and creating a safe learning environment, I inspire students to rediscover a love for reading and writing.   Furthermore, I am constantly looking for new ways to improve my teaching style and lead my students to success.

    I work to consistently create learning experiences that will interest my students.  Students learn more when they are heavily invested in a project, and I believe this begins with a well designed assignment.  Assignments should be tailored to challenge students to think in new ways.  I often encourage students to explore ideas across disciplines, examining new topics from their subjects of strength.  Students are often surprised and excited to learn that they can use mathematics or science to look at literature, or explore connections between the construction of a novel and a musical composition.

    Maintaining a high level of flexibility has helped me immensely as a teacher.  I attempt to embed this flexibility into my courses so that I can easily respond to the needs of my students.  For instance, the use of portfolios allows students to spend more time developing ideas that interest them.  Students can compose writings across numerous genres and subject areas before selecting one or two papers to develop more fully.  Moreover, writing/reading assignments should be designed to address students’ most pertinent academic needs.  In order for this flexibility to positively affect student learning, I work diligently to create a safe learning environment for my students.

    Providing students with a common foundation as well as clearly defining the purpose and expectations of assignments sets the stage for a safe environment where students are rewarded for taking risks in an attempt to exceed their current academic ability.  From the first day, I demonstrate to students that I am much more interested in guiding them toward success rather than pouncing on their moments of failure.  Administrators have always commented on the great rapport I establish with my students, enabling me to motivate them to produce outstanding work.  I take pride in creating an atmosphere where students are respectful of myself, each other, and themselves, and where they constantly strive to create great work.

    Above all, I possess a passion for learning and teaching, and I try to pass this on to my students.  I attempt to help my students find parts of writing and literature that interest them and to develop the necessary skills to continue to grow in their writing after they have moved beyond my class.   Moreover, I attempt to lead by example, continuing to grow as a student and as a teacher throughout the semester and throughout my career.