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My Philosophy in Teaching

I believe the ultimate goal of teaching is sharing my passion for learning and discovery with my students and sharing what I have learned about teaching with other teachers. My philosophy explains how I teach, why I teach, and what I have contributed to teaching within the departments I have served at this point in my career.

I view teaching as an art and seek to learn as much about my craft as possible. As I learn, I attempt to emulate master teachers, apply new concepts, grow from previous experiences, and improve my creativity in each course I teach. Through my teaching, study and mentor ship, I have developed a list of imperatives for exemplary teaching and successful class dynamics: these have formed the basis for my philosophy of teaching. As a result, I will explain how selected elements are embodied within my courses and how students perceive my classes.

I have a passion for teaching, for my students and for the field of recreation. Within the courses I teach, I feel a responsibility to prepare students for their future professional aspirations in recreation. I hope to prepare my students to be the young recreation leaders of tomorrow. One way I help students make the transition from student to professional is to formulate course assignments and policies to mimic job-related tasks.

Teaching Style

I strongly believe in using the “discussion” technique in my classes to facilitate student engagement and interaction. I constantly ask students to answer thought-provoking questions and/or provide their personal views and examples during class lecture. Thought-provoking questions may include student’s beliefs about keeping score in youth programs, or questions regarding inclusion and discrimination issues. I feel that when the students are involved, they comprehend and learn the material better. I make a concerted effort to make every class fun and interesting. I am motivated by the achievements of my students and feel that I have truly done my job when they evidence deep learning through job success.

Classroom Atmosphere and Student Connection

I strive to create a comfortable learning atmosphere for my students by sharing my professional experiences, my mistakes, my successes,and what I learned from each of them. My teaching style tends to be discussion-focused: I believe this stimulates an interactive class and fosters student learning. I firmly believe that students learn best when the atmosphere is fun.

I strive to demonstrate to my students that I care about them as individuals, about their academic progress, and about their futures.

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