Teaching
Statement
As a pragmatist, I draw upon a variety of learning theories and methods, striving to create an interesting and customized learning environment. It is my belief that the major goal of teaching is “student understanding” and this understanding consists of a learner’s ability to demonstrate that they know the “what”, “where”, “when”, “how” and “why” of the subject matter.
The “what” refers to the facts associated with the topic. The “where” refers to the context to which a particular topic is connected. The “when” is the appropriate situation for transfer of understanding. The “how” refers to students’ ability to properly apply the knowledge to the “real-world”, and finally the “why” is related to the significance of the topic and why students should care about that topic.
The goal of my teaching is to cultivate lifelong learners by providing students with a customized and satisfying learning experience. This is done by implementing the following principles:
a) Emphasize community building through group work.
b) Provide students with 360° feedback from a variety of individuals involved in their learning journey.
c) Analyze individual needs and preferences through pre-class surveys.
d) Design and develop course materials to meet student needs.
e) Encourage free, imaginative and critical thinking through course assignments.
f) Evaluate custom course materials continually by analyzing student questions about materials.
g) Build rapport with students and other individuals involved in the learning process in order to open the lines of communication.
h) Create a learning environment in which students feel comfortable to ask questions. The motto in my class is: “There is no such thing as a stupid question.”
There are five teaching competencies I plan on mastering and refining during my tenure as an Assistant Instructor (AI) at Indiana University and subsequent teaching experiences. These competencies include:
Competency 1. Evaluations (Acquired)
Competency 2. Variety of Teaching Experiences (Acquired)
Competency 3. Communication & Management Skills (Acquired)
Competency 4. Instructional Practices (Acquired)
Competency 5. Class Management & Problem Solving (Acquired)
Competency 6. Design & Develop Instructional Materials (Acquired)
Competency 7. Design & Develop Job Aids (Acquired)
Competency 1. Evaluations
W401: Integrating Technology in Teaching course evaluations from 2007-2008 indicates that my students’ perception of my teaching is favorable. The following is a summary of teaching evaluations across classes from 2007 - 2008. Please note that Indiana University uses a 4 point scale for teaching evaluations: 4=Strongly Agree; 3=Agree; 2=Disagree; and 1=Strongly Disagree.
Student Evaluation Quotes
“I thought that the instructor did an excellent job with planning course work and being available for help at all times.”
“Nothing, Simone was a very helpful and available instructor. She always offered feedback and suggestions on how we could make our e-portfolio or other assignments more professional.”
“The real-life scenarios were the most helpful to me.”
I thought she did a great job with everything. She explained assignments in an orderly, clear format and explained questions to everyone if there were any.”
Overall, I thought that this course was very informative and I do not think there is anything that should be changed. I feel that I really took a lot of useful ideas away from this class.”
(See Teaching Competency 1a for Course Evaluation)
Although my course evaluations are strong, I believe there are several ways I can improve my teaching, including:
1. Developing innovate models/examples of teachers using technology in teaching.
2. Assisting students in overcoming their fear of using technology by seeking out best practices in the literature related to technophobia among teachers.
3. Incorporating more human performance skills into the management of courses.
Competency 2. Variety of Teaching Experiences
As mentioned earlier, I hope gain teaching experience in the proposed IST HPT blended program to enhance my teaching skill in the field of HPT. I am confident in my abilities to teach the following classes. Evidence of these competencies are provided in my academic transcripts and teaching experience.
Integrating Technology into Teaching
Foundations of Human Performance Technology
Computer Mediated Learning
Instructional Development & Production Process I/ Multi-Media Instructional Systems I
Evaluation & Change in the Instructional Development Process
I am continually seeking to gain more teaching experience in the following areas:
Needs Analysis
Task Analysis
Grant and Contract Management
Program Evaluation
Human Resource Management
Public Policy Analysis
Introduction to Techniques in Social Science Research
(See Academic Progress Tab in Dossier for Transcripts)
Competency 3. Communication Skills & Class Management
Communication skills are a key component in successful teaching. As a teacher I attempt to reduce confusion and frustration as much as possible during the learning process by sending weekly reminders to enhance students understanding of assignments. It is also essential that an instructor is perceived to be accessible and approachable by their students. Keeping the lines of communication open between instructors and students requires preparation, time management and patience. By incorporating Google Sites in addition to Oncourse I have been able to keep the lines of communication open in a blended learning environment. Google Sites allows me to take advantage of the many user-friendly online management tools. Oncourse survey tools are also used to gain a general understanding of students’ perceptions of their abilities and to give them an opportunity to state concerns that they may have about the course at the beginning of the semester. Using tools such as Doodle Scheduler help to better manage all the courses I teach which range from 38 to 75 students per semester.
(See Teaching Competency 3a for a sample of the w401 Class Site; See Teaching Competency 3b for Course Syllabus; See Teaching Competency 3c for Pre-Class Survey; See Teaching Competency 3d for Doodle Scheduler).
Competency 4. Instructional Practices
It is important not only to teach technology integration in the classroom, but to also model technology integration through instructional practices. Technology is used to assist in presenting and explaining information to students with various learning styles. For example, the scenario based assignments I have developed include instructional videos with audio for auditory learners, images for visual learners and developing the final e-portfolio enables kinesthetic learners to master the assignment requirements. A sample of this assignment and screenshots of three student e-portfolios are provided. (See Teaching Competency 4a for sample assignments).
Analysis & Instructional Design Document for Concept Classification which was produced during R521: Instructional Design & Development has been used by IST faculty as an example to illustrate course content. (See Teaching Competency 4b)
Competency 5. Class Management & Problem Solving
Competency 6. Design & Develop Instructional Materials
Instructional Designer & Program Research Consultant for Indiana University Campus Recreational Sports
Designed and developed risk management instructional modules which resulted in the effective and consistent training of approximately 350 employees
Analyzed, redesigned, and developed the risk management accident report documentation which resulted in a more efficient and comprehensive accident reporting system
Developed employee surveys which resulted in gathering data for the improvement of various risk management processes and protocols
Risk Management Training Modules
1. Member Services
2. Accident Report Module
3. Communicating a Code Red Accident – Hourly Staff
4. Communicating a Code Red Accident – Recreational Sports Field Complex
Competency 7. Design & Develop Job Aids
Competency 8. Cross Cultural Co-Teaching
