Teaching Style
My teaching philosophy has definitely evolved since my first teaching experience as a Teaching Assistant as a Masters Student at the University of Kentucky. I think I was very surprised to discover that teaching is not as easy as it looks, which is when I gained an appreciation for good teachers with effective teaching methods. My various teaching opportunities have led me to view education as a teaching-learning process whereby both me, as an instructor, and the student both strive for a higher level of awareness and understanding. Every time I teach a course I gain not only a deeper understanding of the subject matter, but also experience a unique teaching experience with each group of students.
Considering all the differing teaching styles, my teaching style most resembles a combination of a gardener, a coach, and an entertainer. The gardener must tend to the different kinds of plants in the garden. Each plant requires personal attention and must be provided with the needed nutrition and care to mature into a healthy plant. The coach is a good leader and mentor. While the coach provides good strategies, goals and encouragement along the way, the coach’s job is also to enforce the goals and rules so students don’t get left by the wayside. The entertainer is an important part of my teaching philosophy, infusing humor and using innovative examples makes the course content more interesting which helps the students internalize the material.
With so many cultural and technological distractions in today’s society, students tend to be less familiar with nature and the natural world around them. This is one reason why this an exciting time to teach biology by helping students reconnect to nature by thinking about historical, current, and future topics in biology. For example, most students may be familiar with the basic processes of photosynthesis such as the uptake of atmospheric carbon which is stored as potential energy, and that this energy is the primary energy source of all food webs. But few students may view photosynthesis as an earth changing process. Fire is possible because photosynthesis provides atmospheric oxygen, and fire is considered an important tool in shaping the earth. Also, without the legacy of photosynthesis there would be no fossil fuels or limestone bedrock which is found in the Bluegrass Region of Kentucky. Photosynthesis can also be taught as a current environmental issue as an important tool in mitigating global warming.
My learning goals for any course include: teaching and learning activities that incorporate all learning styles, lecture and lab material that delivers and executes the coarse goals, and regular and varied assessments that provide valuable feedback. With today’s technology, learning can take on many forms. Power points are effective at introducing new material and can be used to facilitate discussion. I have used online tools to post class notes and abbreviated power points to facilitate learning. I have also used blackboard for various homework assignments and posting grades. In a small classroom setting, my preferred way of teaching is to use power point to present new concepts, use a real world example to demonstrate the concept, followed by a learning technique activity that promotes independent and critical thinking along with classroom discussion.