Teaching Philosophy Statement 

Teaching mathematics is a challenging. Students enter the classroom with various learning styles, family backgrounds, attitudes, and conceptions. I believe the teacher is responsible for making the students feel comfortable to ask questions in class and seek help when needed. The teacher must act as a parent, coach, disciplinarian, counselor, adviser, and friend to their students in the classroom. I will  teach, more than just mathematics in their classrooms;  many other things as well. For example, social skills which include respect, honesty, hard-work, ethics, human values and  dedication are unwritten areas of my teaching.

The Teaching Style Questionnaire: At the beginning of any course that I teach, my students need to fill out a questionnaire, where they are asked about their mathematical background and preferred teaching styles. So I can always adjust my teaching style to the needs of the particular audience and I can prepare the lectures at the right pace, produce suitable worksheets and adjust the examples given in class to the areas that my students are going to concentrate. 

Make math interesting:

 In order for a student to succeed in a subject, that subject must engage him or her. Mathematics is too often taught as a cold, distant science with an endless list of formulas and seemingly no connection between topics. I bring excitement and a storyline to my classes, using energy and enthusiasm to teach ideas while guiding students along a path where each new concept a natural consequence of the previous  concept.

 Make math possible. Even I have to admit that math is not always easy. But when presented in the right way, math is not the Leviathan that it is often made out to be. By learning theorems well, calculating examples that illustrate concepts, and studying difficult cases that need special attention, students can tackle any problem. I remind my students that while a problem may be long, they have all the tools needed to solve it.

 Make math relevant:

 Perhaps the most difficult challenge to overcome is that of student apathy toward the subject. On more than one occasion, I have had a student raise a hand in class to ask, “When will I ever need this?” not believing that what he or she is learning will be of any use beyond the course final. To respond, I stress that mathematics does have a profound impact our daily lives. While everyone agrees math does have a practical purpose, students will often point to the more tedious calculations as proof of math’s irrelevance. 

A teacher is a continuous learner: 

Finally I would like to emphasize that teaching mathematics is a learning process with two sides: the students learn from the lecturers and the lecturers with students, quoting Richard Feynman  “The questions of students are often the source of new research”. And through my teaching experience I have learned that is always good to be flexible in my approach and methodology. I try to use different teaching strategies and learning styles to communicate better with each student every time I teach. Each teaching day is an unique learning experience and a new exciting opportunity to develop the students’ interests.