WHOare

YOU?Writing your

philosophy of teachingGeorge Stoupas, Ph.D.

stoupasg@palmbeachstate.edu561-868-4001, SS-123

What is a Philosophy of Teaching?• Brookfield (1990):• Personal purpose: ” . . . a distinctive organizing vision — a clear picture

of why you are doing what you are doing that you can call up at points of crisis — crucial to your personal sanity and morale.”

• Pedagogical purpose: “Teaching is about making some kind of dent in the world so that the world is different than it was before you practiced your craft. Knowing clearly what kind of dent you want to make in the world means that you must continually ask yourself the most fundamental evaluative questions of all — What effect am I having on students and on their learning?”

Your philosophy is your MISSION STATEMENT

Relax…it’s not about what is best

• It’s what makes sense for YOU and YOUR STUDENTS

• May vary by:• Your developmental stage• Your discipline• Your student population• …and other factors

• In fact, it is NOT GRADED for continuing contract purposes• So, use it as an opportunity to show who you are

Truth in Humor:

What is this really saying?

Poll:

•Do you ever include a topic in planning for the semester that you yourself do not yet fully understand?

•Why? Why not?

Ask yourself: What is role of a teacher? What is knowledge?

Vessel-Filler Traveler-Guide Disciple-Master Gardner-Plants

Grasha (1996)

Ask yourself: What is role of a student?

• What makes a “student”? What does a “good” student look like?

• Who are MY students?• Age• Gender• Race/ethnicity• Socioeconomic status• Other demographic factors

• Diversity & Inclusion – how do you meet students’ needs?

Ask yourself: What does learning look like?

• Paradigms & Theories – how do you make sense of education?

• Behaviorism (conditioning, social learning, etc.)• Cognitivism (expertise, metacognition, memory, etc.)• Constructivism (PBL, social development, etc.)• Developmental (attachment, identity formation, etc.)• Postmodernism (systems theory, etc.)

• …and many, many others

Ask yourself: What does teaching look like?

• IF/THEN• Putting your philosophy into practice – operationalizing it

• How would you describe your teaching to someone who couldn’t observe you?

• Artifacts• Learning strategies & design• Assessment methods

Teaching Styles

• The All-Around Flexible and Adaptable Teacher• The Student-Centered, Sensitive Teacher• The Official Curriculum Teacher• The Straight Facts, No Nonsense Teacher• The Big Conference Teacher• The One-Off (Workshop) Teacher

• Mohanna, Chambers, & Wall (2007)

Ask yourself: Where do I want to my students to go from here?• Goals• If you accomplished what you set out to do, what will happen for

your students?

• Type of outcomes assessment• Job skills?• Insight?• Social change?• Expertise?• Memorizing Facts?• Something else?

Example – Dr. Matt Klauza

Example – Dr. Matt Klauza

Ask yourself: Where do I want to go from here?

• Professional development

• How have you changed over the years?• What goals do you have for yourself as an educator?• How do you plan to get to where you’re going?

Self-Reflection Exercise: Finish the sentence

1. As an educator, I am ___________________2. The most important thing about my students is _____________3. In order to learn, people need _______________4. If you came into my classroom, you would see _______________5. If I do my job right, students will ________________6. In 10 years, I’d like to be better at ______________7. I teach because ___________________

Experience & Cognitive Dissonance

• Is it working?• Are you really acting out your vision? Living up to your philosophy?• Or have you changed? Does your philosophy need an update?

How To: The nuts and bolts of your statement• 1-2 pages in length, narrative format, first person, present tense. • Avoid technical jargon and write for a broad audience.• Don’t just rewrite your CV• Include detailed descriptions to help readers “see” into your classroom.• Make it memorable and unique – what separates you?

• Own it! – Don’t pontificate in vague, sweeping philosophical statements• No “education these days…”

Getting Started: Learning about YOU• Self-Reflection

• Performance evaluations• Classroom observation reports• Student course evaluations

• Self-Assessment Inventories• Teaching Perspectives Inventory (Pratt & Collins)

http://www.teachingperspectives.com/tpi/• Teaching Style Survey (Grasha & Reichmann)

http://longleaf.net/teachingstyle.html• Staffordshire Evaluation of Teaching Styles (Mohanna, Chambers, & Wall)

https://tccl.arcc.albany.edu/knilt/images/6/61/Determining_your_teaching_style.pdf

References & Resources

• Ohio State University – Center for the Advancement of Teaching• https://ucat.osu.edu/professional-development/teaching-

portfolio/philosophy/

• University of Minnesota – Center for Educational Innovation• https://cei.umn.edu/writing-your-teaching-philosophy

• Montell, G. (2003). How to write a statement of teaching. The Chronicle of Higher Education

• https://www.chronicle.com/article/How-to-Write-a-Statement-of/45133