Statement of Teaching Philosophy
My teaching philosophy involves fully investing myself in the class. This entails a higher degree of emotional investment and vulnerability, but the rewards are infinitely greater in my opinion. I am a personable classroom leader, and I try to keep the students engaged with my movement and speech patterns, as well as the ideas I communicate. I don't take myself too seriously and never pretend to know everything. This establishes basic honesty, an important tenet to maintain in order to foster trust and respect, and hopefully liking.
Using these basic ideas, I would argue that excellence in teaching means creating a comfortable classroom environment where students feel at ease, and are able to voice their thoughts and opinions with confidence. When I feel that I’ve done an excellent job, I see engaged students with bright eyes, intrigued by what might happen next. In order to achieve this goal, my methodology relies mainly on constructivist and collaborative practices, in order to further engage the students and make them feel like they have a dynamic role to play in the classroom polity. The affective realm is also very important to my definition of excellence—I try to personalize the subject matter as well as incorporating humor in the classroom. I have noticed that students are automatically more engaged with the class when they think they will be entertained. I also try to maintain clarity of expectations when discussing their graded work, to enable them the best chance they have to perform at the highest level they can.
Another key component of memorable and valuable teaching in the library is incorporating the tenets of information literacy. No matter the subject being taught, an effective lesson should incorporate not only information about the subject, but also an inspection of the information itself. Students need to now facts about the world, certainly, but they also need to know how to teach themselves information, and how to refine disparate ideas into a synthesis of understanding. That is one of the many paths on which education and libraries meet—both are centered around effective and valuable systems of dissemination of information.
Librarian teachers have a very special role to play within the dynamic of the library as an institution. As teachers, we are trained to communicate ideas effectively. We also act as the first point of contact for diverse groups of people. We have the skills and opportunities to convert students from reluctant library visitors into confident patrons. With the added responsibility of teaching not only bibliographic skills, but also information literacy, we as library educators have the ability to make an even greater impact on student learning. The library is an institution based on providing all types of information for all types of needs, and thus it is the epitome of information literacy in action. While information literacy should not be taught in isolation, librarian teachers have a great opportunity to position themselves within the outcome of this phenomenon, making themselves and the institution they represent an important and dynamic part of contemporary education practices. As a teacher and a librarian, I see myself as being able to make a difference, to the students I teach, to the library I serve, and to the greater professional community.
Using these basic ideas, I would argue that excellence in teaching means creating a comfortable classroom environment where students feel at ease, and are able to voice their thoughts and opinions with confidence. When I feel that I’ve done an excellent job, I see engaged students with bright eyes, intrigued by what might happen next. In order to achieve this goal, my methodology relies mainly on constructivist and collaborative practices, in order to further engage the students and make them feel like they have a dynamic role to play in the classroom polity. The affective realm is also very important to my definition of excellence—I try to personalize the subject matter as well as incorporating humor in the classroom. I have noticed that students are automatically more engaged with the class when they think they will be entertained. I also try to maintain clarity of expectations when discussing their graded work, to enable them the best chance they have to perform at the highest level they can.
Another key component of memorable and valuable teaching in the library is incorporating the tenets of information literacy. No matter the subject being taught, an effective lesson should incorporate not only information about the subject, but also an inspection of the information itself. Students need to now facts about the world, certainly, but they also need to know how to teach themselves information, and how to refine disparate ideas into a synthesis of understanding. That is one of the many paths on which education and libraries meet—both are centered around effective and valuable systems of dissemination of information.
Librarian teachers have a very special role to play within the dynamic of the library as an institution. As teachers, we are trained to communicate ideas effectively. We also act as the first point of contact for diverse groups of people. We have the skills and opportunities to convert students from reluctant library visitors into confident patrons. With the added responsibility of teaching not only bibliographic skills, but also information literacy, we as library educators have the ability to make an even greater impact on student learning. The library is an institution based on providing all types of information for all types of needs, and thus it is the epitome of information literacy in action. While information literacy should not be taught in isolation, librarian teachers have a great opportunity to position themselves within the outcome of this phenomenon, making themselves and the institution they represent an important and dynamic part of contemporary education practices. As a teacher and a librarian, I see myself as being able to make a difference, to the students I teach, to the library I serve, and to the greater professional community.