Sunday, October 14, 2007
Evolving Teaching Philosophy
I think a perfect teacher is one that challenges and encourages his/her students in a way that makes them want to learn and truly offer their best efforts. The perfect teacher mixes up the teaching style-- sometimes lecturing, other times doing a discussion-- to make sure that the students remain engaged. It is equally important to make one's expectations/requirements for assignments very clear. There is little more frustrating than receiving a bad grade (or even, for some students, a good grade) without explanation. A good teacher makes the criteria clear and helps his/her students practice meeting those aims prior to submitting assignments. I realize that this is much easier said than done, but it's possible. Even just reviewing good examples of the assignment would help some students in knowing what they should do. Despite all those things, I think what it all comes down to is having passion. I think if we all consider who our favorite teachers have been, what our best classroom experiences have been, each of the teachers we think of will have been teachers who wanted to be where they were, who loved what they were doing. It's not a question of "Do you have experience? Do you have knowledge?" (although both of those things are great qualities in teachers); the question is "Do you have passion?"
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2 comments:
I think you raise a good point about "the perfect teacher." I also believe you get the bigger picture context that everything, from the students to teachers and the program, are constant works in progress. That kind of open mind and exploratory thinking and analysis is so important. I have heard brand-new grad students in their first semester of post-undergrad coursework believe they have a plan to overhaul composition -- and all of academia. Yet my experience has been different; I have not seen a single adversarial moment by a professor in Tech Comm or English -- they are all so supportive, and even this forum proves they support freedom of speech and are open to ideas. Entering academia means leaving our comfort zones and entering on a journey. Some of the sights are new, some we can't really identify with and we'd rather them be "our" way. But the reality is the people here know what they are doing and are using their resources in the best way for everyone involved toward an honorable goal in freshman comp. My personal two cents (actual value may vary) is that 1.5 hours probably should be extended to 3, with the other 1.5 added as an out-of-class workshop with C-Is and D-Is present. My point all along this semester has been that teaching freshman comp is about teaching students how to write, not how to become writers. Our own ideology has greater value in moving the program forward and in new directions, but not in the day-to-day application, which requires teamwork and consistency in grading and feedback. These students need to know how to write -- how to get an idea from their mind to someone else -- no matter what their major is. We are communication facilitators, writing coaches -- whatever label anyone wants -- but the concept has to come across that writing is about meaning making, about communicating. We have some great posts from our class that I hope you've been able to read from the two Kims, Laura and of course Nimi and Val, and others, and I've heard Val talk outside of class about her passion for writing, and I hope she too continues on to a PhD and becomes a college professor, because she gets that the rules are part of keeping the writing vehicle on the road. I'm a proponent of the idea that we can't break the rules (and do it effectively and get away with it) unless we KNOW the rules, and grammar is always something that should be kept in the equation for feedback and grading, though meaning making is still the bottom line. I also see value in having D-Is submit their own writing assignments, either creative writing done on their own, or papers from undergrad, to gauge their writing skill and level, so we make sure the teaching assistants understand what good writing is, and isn't, as they begin to shape the writing of undergrads.
Your posts always seem so concise and focused, Stephanie, and I always enjoy reading them so I had to FINALLY comment!
I am so proud of you! You really have a handle on what it takes to be effective in the classroom. You really nailed it when you said that a good teacher needs passion. Students can forgive the "little" things if they know the teacher has a passion for sharing her/his knowledge.
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