My Teaching Philosophy
Since my first formal teaching position almost four years ago, my teaching philosophy has continued to be dynamic. The knowledge and experience I have gained from each subsequent teaching position, paired with the wealth of information I have acquired throughout my journey completing my master’s degree at the University of San Diego, has challenged me to practice the art of self-reflection and critical thinking. In the pursuit of both of these skills, I have developed a set of core values and a belief system that is reflected in why I teach, what I teach, and how I teach.
Why I teach. Why I teach is simple. I want to provide others with the context and tools to be able to acquire skills that will broaden horizons and open doors. I teach because every day is different, every student is different, and every lesson is different. I teach because I believe that people can profoundly affect each other in positive ways, and I think that educational environments should be, and can be, where this happens. I teach because it is my hope to instill within my students the passion and thirst for continual learning and self-growth. As Inoue (2012) states, "One of the most essential goals of education is to help students experience the joy of learning" (p. 125).
I teach ESOL students because with English being the lingua franca it is today, I want to equip as many individuals as I can with the skills to access information, communicate effectively, and participate in our global community to the best of their ability. I recognize English as an international language and teach it as thus (McKay, 2002; Molina, 2013). From living in Central China I understand what it is like to feel silenced, and it is my intent to help those struggling with the same obstacle to find their voices with greater ease. I teach in the attempt to raise student confidence levels and feelings of membership within the international English speaking community through the promotion of diversity and the acceptance of individuality. I teach to add myself as an additional change agent to our local, and global, community of educators.
Finally, I teach because through teaching I continue to learn and through learning I realize how much more there is to know. As Brown (2007) states, "One of the most invigorating things about teaching is that you never stop learning" (p. 486). Teaching international students expands my understanding of the world we live in, and helps me become a more compassionate and aware educator. I try to employ a "socioculturally-sensitive pedagogy" (Molina, 2013) to embrace the nuances and individualities each student brings into the classroom. Beyond teaching, traveling and learning are my two greatest passions. Through exposure to students from around the global, I am able to fulfill all three of my passions within a challenging and rewarding career.
What I teach. I currently teach General English to intermediate-level English language learners, but I always begin with laying a foundation of basic interpersonal skills. My classes are rich with students from diverse cultures so I try to teach inclusion, familiarity, and open-mindedness. As Inoue (2012) states, "The key process of learning is considered to be taking in new perspectives of others" (p. 99). I do this by beginning each term, no matter what level the class, with activities that promote cultural sensitivity and understanding. I ask my students to participate in exercises that give them a name, a face, and a background. I have found that creating an atmosphere grounded on familiarity and respect fosters intrinsic motivation and more meaningful learning.
Through the six basic language skills: reading, writing, speaking, listening, vocabulary, and grammar I focus on content that is applicable to my students’ everyday lives. Through thematic units, I create lessons that utilize material that is practical for real-world use. I also make use of a wide variety of teaching materials and contexts that are challenging as well as interesting. It is important to note that there is a fine line between the subject matter being too challenging, which can promote low self-efficacy, and it being too easy so that it results in boredom (Gass, 2013). It is my belief that most students successfully learn in an environment where they are challenged to the degree that they can meet that challenge with practice and hard work.
I promote practice and hard work outside the classroom, as well as inside. It is outside the classroom where students take hold of the language and make it their own. This is where true experimentation happens, and I try my best to make myself available to my students during this time. I have created student-centered online platforms for each of my classes so they always have access to me and to their peers. This is a social learning environment that Inoue (2012) refers to as a "community of practice" (p. 109). I have found that this extends the learning community from inside a traditional classroom, to an environment where students feel comfortable and traditional academic pressure is alleviated through non-authoritarian interactions.
How I teach. I teach through the role of a facilitator and base many of my methods on Vygotsky's sociocultural theory and Zone of Proximal Development (Gass, 2013). I value the importance of scaffolding, modeling, and guiding and believe that students benefit the most through collaborative and cooperative learning. I also believe in the benefit of student autonomy, where students feel as though they have control over their learning, especially in adult language classes. It is through autonomy that intrinsic motivation can be fostered and to help encourage this, I use materials that students can personally connect to. I also incorporate my students’ interests and backgrounds into my lessons as often as I can. I have found that the more students know about each other the more comfortable they become and the more willing they are to participate in class. Additionally, I take part in activities and share information about myself so that the students can connect to me personally as well. I try to spread the power dynamic within my classes evenly, so that students feel equal to each other and to myself.
There are certain aspects of teaching, however, that do not allow for an evenly distributed sense of power. One of these aspects is assessment. Although I understand the usefulness in formal testing, I assess my students on a multitude of levels both formally and informally (Brown & Abeywickrama, 2010). It is through the triangulation of data that we can best evaluate information, and I believe this to be true about students’ abilities as well. I place a high value on self-assessment, which can raise students’ accountability of their own learning and actively engage them in this process. I also ask for student opinions on my assessment methods as well as my activities, materials, and lesson structure. Having a class of adult language learners from different educational backgrounds demands a range of teaching methods, and I am always open to incorporating new ideas if I feel they are beneficial for the whole class.
Finally, I firmly believe in the benefit of peer collaboration and structure my classes to allow for pair, small group, and whole-class interaction. My teaching methods are predominantly communicative-based, as I have found that if the majority of the activities are mastery-goal centered rather than performance-goal centered, the focus switches from “I am doing this to get an A” to “I am doing this so that I can be a successful English speaker”. This creates a community of learners rather than a community of students. Within this collaborative community of learners comes an invaluable support system. Through this, students teach each other. Not simply vocabulary or grammar, but cultural life lessons that I hope broaden their understanding of the world and diminish negative stereotypes that they might have. We are ambassadors of our own countries, and my hope is that when students return home, whether home is Japan or Switzerland or Argentina, they will continue their international friendships and promote the acceptance of diversity to their family and friends. As I stated in the beginning, people can profoundly affect each other in positive ways and I try to facilitate this through why I teach, what I teach, and the way I teach.
Why I teach. Why I teach is simple. I want to provide others with the context and tools to be able to acquire skills that will broaden horizons and open doors. I teach because every day is different, every student is different, and every lesson is different. I teach because I believe that people can profoundly affect each other in positive ways, and I think that educational environments should be, and can be, where this happens. I teach because it is my hope to instill within my students the passion and thirst for continual learning and self-growth. As Inoue (2012) states, "One of the most essential goals of education is to help students experience the joy of learning" (p. 125).
I teach ESOL students because with English being the lingua franca it is today, I want to equip as many individuals as I can with the skills to access information, communicate effectively, and participate in our global community to the best of their ability. I recognize English as an international language and teach it as thus (McKay, 2002; Molina, 2013). From living in Central China I understand what it is like to feel silenced, and it is my intent to help those struggling with the same obstacle to find their voices with greater ease. I teach in the attempt to raise student confidence levels and feelings of membership within the international English speaking community through the promotion of diversity and the acceptance of individuality. I teach to add myself as an additional change agent to our local, and global, community of educators.
Finally, I teach because through teaching I continue to learn and through learning I realize how much more there is to know. As Brown (2007) states, "One of the most invigorating things about teaching is that you never stop learning" (p. 486). Teaching international students expands my understanding of the world we live in, and helps me become a more compassionate and aware educator. I try to employ a "socioculturally-sensitive pedagogy" (Molina, 2013) to embrace the nuances and individualities each student brings into the classroom. Beyond teaching, traveling and learning are my two greatest passions. Through exposure to students from around the global, I am able to fulfill all three of my passions within a challenging and rewarding career.
What I teach. I currently teach General English to intermediate-level English language learners, but I always begin with laying a foundation of basic interpersonal skills. My classes are rich with students from diverse cultures so I try to teach inclusion, familiarity, and open-mindedness. As Inoue (2012) states, "The key process of learning is considered to be taking in new perspectives of others" (p. 99). I do this by beginning each term, no matter what level the class, with activities that promote cultural sensitivity and understanding. I ask my students to participate in exercises that give them a name, a face, and a background. I have found that creating an atmosphere grounded on familiarity and respect fosters intrinsic motivation and more meaningful learning.
Through the six basic language skills: reading, writing, speaking, listening, vocabulary, and grammar I focus on content that is applicable to my students’ everyday lives. Through thematic units, I create lessons that utilize material that is practical for real-world use. I also make use of a wide variety of teaching materials and contexts that are challenging as well as interesting. It is important to note that there is a fine line between the subject matter being too challenging, which can promote low self-efficacy, and it being too easy so that it results in boredom (Gass, 2013). It is my belief that most students successfully learn in an environment where they are challenged to the degree that they can meet that challenge with practice and hard work.
I promote practice and hard work outside the classroom, as well as inside. It is outside the classroom where students take hold of the language and make it their own. This is where true experimentation happens, and I try my best to make myself available to my students during this time. I have created student-centered online platforms for each of my classes so they always have access to me and to their peers. This is a social learning environment that Inoue (2012) refers to as a "community of practice" (p. 109). I have found that this extends the learning community from inside a traditional classroom, to an environment where students feel comfortable and traditional academic pressure is alleviated through non-authoritarian interactions.
How I teach. I teach through the role of a facilitator and base many of my methods on Vygotsky's sociocultural theory and Zone of Proximal Development (Gass, 2013). I value the importance of scaffolding, modeling, and guiding and believe that students benefit the most through collaborative and cooperative learning. I also believe in the benefit of student autonomy, where students feel as though they have control over their learning, especially in adult language classes. It is through autonomy that intrinsic motivation can be fostered and to help encourage this, I use materials that students can personally connect to. I also incorporate my students’ interests and backgrounds into my lessons as often as I can. I have found that the more students know about each other the more comfortable they become and the more willing they are to participate in class. Additionally, I take part in activities and share information about myself so that the students can connect to me personally as well. I try to spread the power dynamic within my classes evenly, so that students feel equal to each other and to myself.
There are certain aspects of teaching, however, that do not allow for an evenly distributed sense of power. One of these aspects is assessment. Although I understand the usefulness in formal testing, I assess my students on a multitude of levels both formally and informally (Brown & Abeywickrama, 2010). It is through the triangulation of data that we can best evaluate information, and I believe this to be true about students’ abilities as well. I place a high value on self-assessment, which can raise students’ accountability of their own learning and actively engage them in this process. I also ask for student opinions on my assessment methods as well as my activities, materials, and lesson structure. Having a class of adult language learners from different educational backgrounds demands a range of teaching methods, and I am always open to incorporating new ideas if I feel they are beneficial for the whole class.
Finally, I firmly believe in the benefit of peer collaboration and structure my classes to allow for pair, small group, and whole-class interaction. My teaching methods are predominantly communicative-based, as I have found that if the majority of the activities are mastery-goal centered rather than performance-goal centered, the focus switches from “I am doing this to get an A” to “I am doing this so that I can be a successful English speaker”. This creates a community of learners rather than a community of students. Within this collaborative community of learners comes an invaluable support system. Through this, students teach each other. Not simply vocabulary or grammar, but cultural life lessons that I hope broaden their understanding of the world and diminish negative stereotypes that they might have. We are ambassadors of our own countries, and my hope is that when students return home, whether home is Japan or Switzerland or Argentina, they will continue their international friendships and promote the acceptance of diversity to their family and friends. As I stated in the beginning, people can profoundly affect each other in positive ways and I try to facilitate this through why I teach, what I teach, and the way I teach.