Statement of Teaching Philosophy
Visit to Universidad Tecnica Santa Catarina - Monterrey, N.L., México 2012
Teaching is an opportunity to inspire and empower students. As a teacher, it
is my goal to enhance student learning as a transformative experience. Ideally, I want students to feel personally changed by their participation in a course I am teaching. Promoting an understanding that social and political forces shape the construction and utilization of knowledge is central to my philosophy of teaching. This is a particularly important concept given the nature and history of inclusive and special education. There is a need for teachers to be advocates for their students related to the access of the general education curriculum - or in some international contexts – access to the school at all! I work to encourage students to challenge existing boundaries by teaching them to make the familiar strange and question how they have come to know what they believe to be true about their world. This helps students see boundaries, whether personal or social, as constructed and affords them an opportunity to challenge and move beyond them. I believe that teachers can make a difference in the world and it is my job to help them discover this passion! Below I offer some specific examples that I seek to demonstrate this teaching philosophy in various settings.
Experience working with individuals with disabilities in inclusive settings
While serving as a special education public school teacher I was personally involved in team-teaching and the inclusion of students with high incidence disabilities in general education classes. Also, I successfully collaborated with community members while establishing a transition work program with a local hospital. During my Master’s preparation I taught college level students with learning disabilities reading and writing - using research-based instructional methods. As a full time doctoral student at the University of Wisconsin Madison I was a teaching assistant, program and research assistant, and a supervisor for student teachers in a cross-categorical teacher preparation program. While a program assistant for two years, I was part of a research team conducting intervention research seeking to improve the math skills of students with learning and behavior problems using enhanced anchored instruction.
College teaching, service, and collaboration
Since graduating from graduate school in 2006, I have successfully taught and conducted research in two different higher education settings for five years. In my former position in the general education teacher education department at St. Norbert College, I taught undergraduate and graduate special education classes in the teacher education program to general education majors, advised education students, and served on several divisional and campus-wide committees. In my most recent position at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, somewhat similar to St. Norbert, I taught undergraduate and graduate students in a teacher education program. The main difference, however, is that Oshkosh has a special education department. As I have reflected upon my teaching, (and revised my classes accordingly) I have tried to structure my classes to include a field experience component with local public schools, when not already included in the class description. An assessment tool I have used with those experiences is a video journal kept by the student throughout the placement. These video journals are then presented to the class and uploaded to the student’s on-line portfolio management system (LiveText) where it is securely housed along with other state licensure requirements. Students have reported a more meaningful placement as a result. Other experiences with technology include on-line class management systems (e.g., Desire 2 Learn, Blackboard, WebCT), PowerPoint, and instruction using video and in class on-line streaming via “smart” technology.
is my goal to enhance student learning as a transformative experience. Ideally, I want students to feel personally changed by their participation in a course I am teaching. Promoting an understanding that social and political forces shape the construction and utilization of knowledge is central to my philosophy of teaching. This is a particularly important concept given the nature and history of inclusive and special education. There is a need for teachers to be advocates for their students related to the access of the general education curriculum - or in some international contexts – access to the school at all! I work to encourage students to challenge existing boundaries by teaching them to make the familiar strange and question how they have come to know what they believe to be true about their world. This helps students see boundaries, whether personal or social, as constructed and affords them an opportunity to challenge and move beyond them. I believe that teachers can make a difference in the world and it is my job to help them discover this passion! Below I offer some specific examples that I seek to demonstrate this teaching philosophy in various settings.
Experience working with individuals with disabilities in inclusive settings
While serving as a special education public school teacher I was personally involved in team-teaching and the inclusion of students with high incidence disabilities in general education classes. Also, I successfully collaborated with community members while establishing a transition work program with a local hospital. During my Master’s preparation I taught college level students with learning disabilities reading and writing - using research-based instructional methods. As a full time doctoral student at the University of Wisconsin Madison I was a teaching assistant, program and research assistant, and a supervisor for student teachers in a cross-categorical teacher preparation program. While a program assistant for two years, I was part of a research team conducting intervention research seeking to improve the math skills of students with learning and behavior problems using enhanced anchored instruction.
College teaching, service, and collaboration
Since graduating from graduate school in 2006, I have successfully taught and conducted research in two different higher education settings for five years. In my former position in the general education teacher education department at St. Norbert College, I taught undergraduate and graduate special education classes in the teacher education program to general education majors, advised education students, and served on several divisional and campus-wide committees. In my most recent position at the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, somewhat similar to St. Norbert, I taught undergraduate and graduate students in a teacher education program. The main difference, however, is that Oshkosh has a special education department. As I have reflected upon my teaching, (and revised my classes accordingly) I have tried to structure my classes to include a field experience component with local public schools, when not already included in the class description. An assessment tool I have used with those experiences is a video journal kept by the student throughout the placement. These video journals are then presented to the class and uploaded to the student’s on-line portfolio management system (LiveText) where it is securely housed along with other state licensure requirements. Students have reported a more meaningful placement as a result. Other experiences with technology include on-line class management systems (e.g., Desire 2 Learn, Blackboard, WebCT), PowerPoint, and instruction using video and in class on-line streaming via “smart” technology.