TEACHING PHILOSOPHY                      TEACHING PHILOSOPHY                     TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

Introduction

A theory of teaching must be situated in specific institutional and disciplinary contexts, whereas at the same time there are some universal principles of excellent teaching that apply across institutions and disciplines.  

Teaching is an interactive process between teachers and students.  Given the interactive nature of teaching, a variety of skill sets is involved: motivational, interpersonal, and intellectual skills.  For college teachers, the special nature of the subject matter taught also affects the understanding of teaching and the effective methods of teaching.  Next, I am going to discuss my understanding of some universal principles of excellent teaching.  After that, I will discuss my own theory and methods of teaching as an assistant professor of communications at a university.

Universal Principles of Excellent Teaching

I believe an excellent teacher must possess the following qualities: knowledgeable, intelligent, and expressive; fair or objective, understanding, patient, personable, caring, and open-minded; able to influence, to motivate, and to encourage, enthusiastic, creative, and passionate.  An excellent teacher must be competent with what he or she is teaching and be able to deliver his or her knowledge clearly and effectively to students.  The expertise or competence gains the teacher credibility or to put it in Aristotle’s words, he or she possesses good sense.

Knowledgeability is necessary but not adequate for excellent teaching.  A teacher must also be able to gain good will from students by showing him or herself as having good will.  To do this, an excellent teacher will make him or herself available to students, be willing to work for or with students.  An excellent teacher will not only show concerns for students’ academic growth, but sometimes more importantly, express concerns for students’ personal growth.  Thus, listening to students’ needs or problems and helping students solve problems is another important facet for excellent teaching.

As teaching is interactive, which means effective teaching can be achieved only through the cooperative efforts from both the teachers and students, the ability to motivate students to do well constitutes another indispensable element of excellent teaching.  A good mastery of influencing skills is the key here.  Given the variety of students, no fixed strategies of motivation can be applied; rather, the teacher must be able to adapt the words of influence to specific students in order to actually motivate them.  For example, rewards strategies may work the best for most students, but still for some students a little penalty might serve as a good awakening call.

In sum, an excellent teacher must possess the necessary psychological or emotional, communicative, and intellectual skills in order to teach effectively.

Own Theory and Methods in Teaching

I have been training myself in the above three universal principles of excellent teaching and I make sure I apply them to my own teaching.  For example, I presented myself in front of students as being very knowledgeable of course materials.  When I delivered materials in class lectures, for example, I speak at a slow rate and use emphases complemented and enhanced by the use of such visual aids as PowerPoint, videos, and writing boards, etc.  My organized way of lecturing helped students learn well.  In terms of interpersonal skills, I engaged in active listening, for example, I paraphrased students’ questions and my own answers for clarification, used a variety of examples and illustrations to help students understand complex concepts, expressed my appreciation and positive attitudes towards students’ participation in class, etc.  What is more, I reached out to students in need and invited them to my office to have private conversations with them, helping them solve problems, showing my care for their performance, and at the same time communicate my high expectations for them.  Besides, I have been constantly improving my motivational skills in order to make students take their own learning seriously and responsibly.

The courses I teach, for example, interpersonal communication, intercultural communication, gendered communication, etc., require me to take specific approaches.  The applied nature of these courses entails the close connection between knowledge and practice and the most effective way to make that connection in classroom is to engage students in practical learning.  For instance, having students do role playing, asking them to apply concepts or principles to their every day life, or to learn about their own life through analysis of media products (e.g., songs, movies, newspapers, magazines, television shows).  To help students make such a connection, I make sure that I do that myself through providing plenty of examples in class.

In addition, as a communications educator, I know the importance of making myself role models for students because action talks louder than words.  So I monitor my own performance in classrooms as well as outside classrooms in a way that it will demonstrate the communication principles.  For example, when I expressed my sincere understanding of students’ busy semester, one student commented, "you're empathizing with us." (Note: empathizing was one of the key concepts in listening).

I also make sure my teaching is kept abreast with the social and academic world.  I used modern technologies in my teaching, for instance, I used LCD technologies in classroom and I have also used WebPages for my courses.  Besides, I always make sure that I keep myself updated with research and studies in the relevant fields and apply them to my teaching.

Conclusion

To conclude, I believe teaching is an interactive or cooperative process between teachers and students.  Its effectiveness can be achieved through some special sets of skills an excellent teacher must possess, for instance, intellectual, interpersonal, and motivational skills.  As for college teachers teaching applied courses such as interpersonal or intercultural communication, an excellent teaching also means role modeling, practical learning methods, and keeping up with the society.

TEACHING PHILOSOPHY             TEACHING PHILOSOPHY            TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

The whole art of teaching is only the art of awakening the natural curiosity of young minds for the purpose of satisfying it afterwards.
                                                                                                   --Anatole France

Education would be much more effective if its purpose was to ensure that by the time they leave school every boy and girl should know how much they do not know, and be imbued with a lifelong desire to know it.
                                                                                                  --Sir William Haley