Experience Summary
Most of my teaching experience has come through the various assistantships I had at Wheaton College. These involved a wide range of tasks, from tutoring to leading discussions to conducting extensive research. I have been able to sharpen the skills I developed as an undergraduate through my studies and teaching opportunities at Notre Dame. Not only that, I have witnessed the art of pedagogy reach a level of excellence I had never thought possible. These first-rate professors combine raw intellectual power with gentleness, jocularity and humility, and while I am on leave this year from the program, I would be proud to help students in even a fraction of the way these individuals have helped me.
Teaching Style
Excellence in teaching, I believe, depends less on method and more on the character of the teacher. Since a student is a human being before he or she assumes the role of the learner, it is incumbent upon the teacher to respect the individual, and likewise earn his or her respect, first, well before considering the more technical pedagogical aspects. Along these lines, the teacher must be as good of a listener, must be able to pay the strictest kind of attention to the student, as he or she is an instructor. Intuition and patience are essential. It is only when the educator is able to establish this sort of environment that the teaching/learning exchange can take place.