Teaching Philosophy

For language and literature

2005

TEACHING GOALS

I teach so that I may impart enthusiasm and techniques for learning, stimulate analytical and comparative reasoning and encourage independent, creative and innovative thinking.

The goal of teaching is to give students the desire to learn more, asking a question every time one is answered, keeping students in a perpetual state of curiosity and interest. Also, the teacher should elicit associations and provoke connections in the students, and stimulate in them discovery. As well, the teacher should construct a clear and organized picture of a subject matter, of the grammar of a language, of the historical, social, cultural and literary context of an author, of the breadth and amplitude of a literary work, or of the context and implications of a critical theory.

TEACHING METHODS

The method of teachingcan always be improved, with new technologies, new examples and new research. However, at the base of my current teaching methods are the following indispensable guidelines: Set high standards at the beginning of a course and expect excellent work. Create a comfortable and friendly environment in which students are always encouraged to ask questions, and are praised for their effort. Present new material with enthusiasm; make students laugh. Keep students engaged, by having them actively participate in the lessons, by writing on the board, reading examples in front of the class, having them explain ideas and grammatical concepts to the class in their own words. Encourage boldness and confidence by praising students for their attempts, and while they are confident, direct them towards refinement and precision of their ideas. Keep students stimulated; know their individual levels, and respond to each one with questions that are tailored to their individual capacities.

For language classes: I strive to place learning in context, exposing real-life situations to students, using Internet technologies, language videos and cinema, and having students do stand-up, improvisations of real-life scenes, paying particular attention to intonation, accent, and rhythm in the dialogues. I integrate current events and popular culture into the classroom via newspapers, magazines and music and use it to exemplify vocabulary and grammatical structures. I frequently (and with much encouragement from the students) take 1-minute breaks during lectures for “linguistic/cultural notes,” that delve into the history of the language, into the etymology of certain vocabulary words and into the evolution of the grammatical structures into commonly used phrases. One of my goals and also one of my strengths is to present dry and difficult structures as if they were very interesting (and NEVER preface a structure by claming that it is difficult or boring).

For literature classes: I am driven to provide historical (and geographical) timeframes, cultural frameworks and the social and political relevance of each literary piece to its time period and to the history of literature. I aim to achieve a level of preparation, which will enable me at any time to offer copious examples of rhetorical figures, of literary tendencies within specific works, and of the characteristics of literary genre. I strive for a balance between open-minded flexibility and firm attention to details. I listen very carefully to students and integrate their ideas into my lesson plans. I write all of my own lesson plans and constantly update them, so that I may address individual problems that manifest in each section.

TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

Diversity is an essential element in all healthy communities and I celebrate the differences among my students, and honor their individual strengths, and individual needs. I try to point out each of their abilities, and give them a sense of pride in confront to the others,and focus on the idea that the classroom is a place where the students can share ideas and learn from each other. I recognize that all students learn differently. I thus aim to supply multiple types of activities and situations, varying visual, aural, and hands-on exercises.

Tests are opportunities to achieve

I believe and I perpetuate the idea that quizzes, tests and exams are opportunities to achieve and to show improvement, NOT to evidence failure. I am committed to writing quizzes and tests that evidence what the student does know and never aim to trick them. I believe that quizzes and tests should have very clear instructions and clear objectives and cover all of the material presented in a class, and nothing else.

A teacher should love learning as much as he or she loves teaching. A teacher should be willing to learn also from his or her students and should never presume to know all of the answers. A teacher should admit when he or she is wrong. A teacher should try to be the best role model possible and never lose confidence or the passion to teach.