Writing your own statement of teaching philosophy FAQ - How important is the Statement of teaching philosophy?

- What exactly is it? How philosophical does it have to e? - How long sho!ld it e? "he "eaching #hilosophy Statement is $%" a s!mmary of the experiences on yo!r &'( nor is it an article on pedagogy) *t is a concise( specific disc!ssion of the o +ectives and approaches yo! c!rrently !se( have !sed in the past( and plan to !se in the f!t!re) General advice: Do... - ,e honest and tr!thf!l a o!t yo!r teaching experience - Show enth!siasm - Write one-page( no more than one and a half) - ,e specific- tal. a o!t co!rses yo! have ta!ght and highlight s!ccessf!l co!rses or strategies) Show what ma.es yo! an effective teacher) - "al. a o!t co!rses yo! are prepared to teach - /now the profile of the instit!tion to which yo! are applying and mention co!rses that wo!ld fit into their c!rric!l!m 0is it a ig state !niversity( a religio!s school( a li eral-arts college? 1ead their mission and val!es on their we site2 - 3ention how yo! !se technology as a complement to class - 3ention any innovative ideas yo! have come !p with and p!t into practice - 3ention any teaching awards yo! have received( and any co!rses yo! have developed yo!rself) - "ie yo!r essay to yo!r teaching eval!ations( highlighting or even riefly 4!oting any comments that are especially positive) - Avoid clich5s( e original) *t6s o. to e creative here7 - Avoid technical +argon) - &hec. for spelling errors over and over)

Dont... - Write more than one page( may e one and a half 8serio!sly7 - &ritici9e yo!r c!rrent instit!tion or any colleag!es - 3a.e negative comments a o!t yo!r st!dents - 3a.e negative comments) #eriod7 - "ell yo!r life story 8it6s irrelevant - &ome across as arrogant or inflexi le - ,e dogmatic a o!t teaching( ed!cation( etc) - ,e too philosophical or ma.e vag!e generali9ations) :o e specific a o!t how yo! wo!ld accomplish something"If you say you work to encourage collaboration in the classroom, then explain how you do that, or if you're a new teacher, how you would do that," she says. "It's easy to say, 'I want to encourage collaboration in the classroom,' or 'I want to get students to think more critically' and leave it at that. But who doesn't want to do that?" So!rcehttp-;;chronicle)com;article;How-to-Write-a-Statement-of;<=>??; - :on@t forget that teaching is a o!t st!dents( not a o!t yo!ew teachers often devote their statements to showing that they can be innovative or that they can incorporate sophisticated concepts in a classroom, but they seldom mention how students reacted to those innovations and concepts, says !s. "etrites of #hicago. "It's important to present a picture of yourself in a classroom with students. $therwise readers may ask, '%as this all about you or the students?'

:o yo! need inspiration? Here are some 4!estions that may help yo! get started 0http-;;chronicle)com;article;How-to-Write-a-Statementof;<=>??;2 & %hat do you believe about teaching? & %hat do you believe about learning? %hy? & 'ow is that played out in your classroom? & 'ow does student identity and background make a difference in how you teach? & %hat do you still struggle with in terms of teaching and student learning? 1ecommended readinghttp-;;chronicle)com;article;How-to-Write-a-Statement-of;<=>??;

= Steps- http-;;chronicle)com;article;=-Steps-to-a-3emora le;>A<>BB;

Here is a list of potential questions that may be motivating search committees when they ask you to submit a statement of teaching philosophy: 1. . %. (. ). +. Will this candidate be able to handle the teaching responsibilities of the job? !oes her approach to teaching suggest that she"he would be a good #fit$ for our department and our students? !oes this candidate want to teach? &f so' why? &f & were to step into a classroom and observe this candidate teaching' what would & see? How do this candidate*s research interests shape his"her teaching? What will this candidate add to our department? What will our students gain from his"her classes? What will our department gain in terms of specific courses' new opportunities for students to develop their skills and knowledge' and interesting pedagogical approaches? How does this candidate respond to the perennial challenges of teaching' such as motivating students to learn' evaluating student work' maintaining high standards in the classroom' and juggling teaching with other responsibilities we e-pect faculty to fulfill?

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(source: http-;;teachingcenter)w!stl)ed!;writing-teaching-philosophy-statement2

Read carefully the provided teaching philosophy samples (see handout) and discuss them with the class: - :isc!ss their strengths and potential wea.nesses) -What has attracted yo!r attention in each one of them? -What aspects do they emphasi9e? -What have yo! learned from them?