Teaching Philosophy

I view it as an honor and a privilege to be one of the individuals that gets to call themselves a teacher.  I have always looked up to and admired educators from my time as a student and I have often been surrounded by educators most of my life be it friends or family.  During my many years of working in the clinical setting I identified working with students to be the area of my work that I was most passionate about so when the opportunity arose to move into the academic realm and teach at Boise State I jumped at the opportunity.  Throughout my time both in the clinical setting and in the classroom I have been able to develop a philosophy of teaching that is multifaceted and that I am sure will continue to evolve over time.

First and foremost, I believe that teachers should strive to always treat students with kindness and respect.  Teachers are in a position of authority and must work to care for this responsibility.  Interactions with students should be positive and encouraging as much as possible and always professional.  When a teacher falls short in this regard it is absolutely imperative that the teacher learns from the experience in order to be better in the future.  

Second, I work to eschew the traditional view of the teacher as the know-all expert in the classroom and the students as individuals absorbing information solely from the teacher in a one-way fashion.  Instead, I aspire to collaborate with students to forward their education.  In practice this means connecting students to many resources beyond myself which include books, online resources, on-campus resources, as well as conferences/inservices.  This can also be connecting students to people in the community who can provide mentorship or resources in order for them to further their professional goals.  In the classroom or lab this can mean stating ‘I don’t know’ when asked a question that I don’t readily have the answer to and then encouraging everyone in the classroom, teacher and students alike, to work together to find the answer.  I find that students very much respect this type of interaction.  The overarching goal of this philosophical approach is to encourage students to take ownership in their education and to serve as a facilitator and motivator in the endeavor.

Third, in our Diagnostic Radiology program we are directly working to cultivate future healthcare professionals.  As such, I believe that it is incumbent upon our program and myself as a teacher to have high expectations regarding professional behavior and habits.  This begins on day one by both modeling and expecting students to show up on-time and prepared.  This also means modeling and expecting clear and professional communication and interacting in groups in a cohesive manner with respectful behavior. Most importantly, this means modeling and expecting an understanding of and respect for diverse cultures.  I believe that students will be much more likely to exhibit professional behaviors if these same behaviors are modeled for them by faculty.  This positive modeling is likely more important than policy or procedures.  

Fourth, I believe that educators must strive to continually grow and adapt over time.  We are in a period of rapid change brought about by technological advances as well as the response to the pandemic. Change can be difficult but I believe that educators must adapt to new environments and conditions in order to be most effective in their practice.  This often means being open to new ways of doing things and to learning new skills and technologies. 

Finally, I believe it is important that a teacher recognize that students learn in a wide variety of manners. Some students are great traditional test takers while others thrive in the hands-on learning environment of the lab.  For some students writing comes naturally while others struggle to convey their thoughts in written format and instead feel more comfortable utilizing other mediums to convey information.  I work to diversify my learning content, assignments, and assessments in such a way that hopefully all students are able to feel that they can learn and succeed and that all students feel stretched in some aspect of their learning.  This includes students that have documented learning disabilities and that require accommodations in order to be most successful in the course or program. 

In summary, I have developed a teaching philosophy that centers around respect and kindness for students while also maintaining high expectations. The teacher should strive to model professional behaviors and grow and adapt over time.  My philosophy views the teacher as a facilitator that recognizes that students have a variety of strengths and that one must strive to help students take ownership of their education and ultimate success.