If you have much give of your wealth. If you have little give of your heart. -- Arab Proverb
It's great to have you here. :)
Today begins our first week of exploration into what virtues are needed within higher education, as we keep in mind our primary research question:
What does a virtuous educator look like in 21st century online higher education?
Karen Cantor, Carrie Schneider, and Tom Vander Ark posed similar questions in their recent paper, Preparing Teachers for Deeper Learning (2014). In this paper, the authors realize the growing "potential for personalized preparation and development pathways for teachers" (p. ii). This blog is a personal pathway of my own, developed in hopes others may benefit as well.
Our first step in answering the above research question is to conduct an exercise in personal introspection and reflection, namely discovering our individual Teaching Philosophy. After all, we can only directly control and affect change within ourselves, so if we want to change the world, the nation, or the system, we must begin in our heart. Also, we hold within our brains a unique perspective on the world and our work within it. So, no one thinks or feels exactly like we do, and determining what our personal beliefs are about what teaching is and what it means to us is the best place to begin.
Developing a Teaching Philosophy -- What is teaching and what does it mean to you?
Dr. Neil Haave, in article featured in Faculty Focus this summer entitled Six Questions That Will Bring Your Teaching Philosophy into Focus, explains that as teachers we benefit most from exploring both our beliefs about learning, as well as the teaching and learning experiences that have informed and influenced our instructional practices to date. Specifically, it is important to conduct an evaluation of why those experiences were influential and what made them memorable because in doing so we reveal elements of teaching that we personally consider to have the most impact on our students, as well as those practices we wish to incorporate or continue to use in our methodology. Other important aspects we need to consider include goals we have for what we provide students through our instructional practices, and why these goals are personally important to us (Haave, 2014).
Our preferences are relevant to our educational approach. Additionally, personal perceptions concerning the basis of all knowledge, the central purpose of education, and the ultimate goal of schooling should be included in our thought processes when examining exactly what it is that teaching means to us as unique individual educators (Gutek, 2009). All of these questions are visualized below in the mind map I constructed.
Beyond considering these questions, I encourage you to put your answers in writing, to construct your own Statement of Teaching Philosophy. As a professional educator, this statement is an essential part of your resume packet when seeking employment.
The best online and easily accessible resource for doing so is How to Write a Statement of Teaching Philosophy: A Practical Workshop on What a Teaching Philosophy is and How to Get Started by Dr. Heather Doherty. Dr. Doherty provides an easy, straightforward guide complete with a helpful worksheet to organize thoughts.
So, explore your most influential teaching and learning experiences. Evaluate why they were influential and what made them memorable. Ask youself the questions in the mind map. Complete Dr. Doherty's worksheet and construct your own Teaching Philosophy as we progress through the week. If you have penned one before, please take this time to refresh and revisit your original ideas. Do you feel like the same educator today as you did then? Do the differences affect your philosophy?
I have posted my own recently-created teaching philosophy as an example on the About Me page. For the next few days, I will provide you with food for thought, resources, and examples to help you craft yours. Please feel free to share any thoughts, questions, opinions, suggested corrections, and helpful ideas you have below in the Comments section. I am looking forward to working with you!
Please lend your voice to our January Survey, and join me tomorrow for Tech & Tips Tuesday!
See you then,
Melynda
@Melynda_Conner
#TCBHigherEd
References:
Cantor, K., Schneider, C., Vander Ark, T. (2014). Preparing Teachers for Deeper Learning. Retrieved from http://cdno4.gettingsmart.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/FINAL-Preparing-Teachers-for-Deeper-Learning-Paper.pdf
Doherty, H. (n.d.). How to Write a Statement of Teaching Philosophy. Retrieved from https://curriculumfellows.hms.harvard.edu/sites/curriculumfellows.hms.harvard.edu/files/u12/How%20to%20Write%20a%20Statement%20of%20Teaching%20Philosophy%20v_2%20annotated.pdf
Gutek, G. L. (2009). New perspectives on
philosophy and education. Chicago, IL: Loyola University.
Haave, N. (2014). Six
questions that will bring your teaching philosophy into focus. Retrieved
from http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/philosophy-of-teaching/six-questions-will-bring-teaching-philosophy-focus/
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