In an era of Chat GPT and defunding the humanities, how can we teach writing in a manner that remains accessible and relevant? With this question in mind, I design classroom activities that prioritize experiential and collaborative learning. To encourage active engagement, my classes will regularly utilize breakout groups, peer feedback, collaborative online notetaking, and one-on-one office hour meetings, in addition to traditional roundtable discussions [V1]. I create various ways for students to participate, such as asking someone to read out loud the passages on a handout, having students bring in class-related material that they are passionate about (ranging from novels to TikToks), and even playing games (a popular one is trivia on citation guidelines) [V2]. These activities are accompanied by assignments that stress the relevance of class materials to students’ everyday life, as well as highlighting the humanities’ transferable skillsets to general professional success. I offer a variety of assignments beyond the traditional academic writing model, such as an op-ed, interview, and other forms of public-facing writing [V2, K2]. I emphasize how much I want to hear the students’ individual writing “voices” and the topics that feel important to them. Similarly, when I design the syllabus, I try to find sources that are either published very recently or have clear resonances with our present day [V2]. Also integrated into the syllabus are regular in-class “workshops” on concrete skillsets, such as notetaking, outlining, researching, and revising. While we assume that all students know how to read, for example, how to read and annotate texts at the college level is a topic worthy of discussion [V2]. 

Perhaps counter-intuitively, I believe that great learning and great teaching are acts of great listening. This means listening to silence during a discussion—as uncomfortable as it may be, I have come to realize that sometimes a gap in the conversation is valuable processing time for students [K1, K2]. It means listening to others' words—I encourage my students to fully pay attention to their peers and teach how to closely read the assigned texts, instead of jumping to conclusions. Correspondingly, I believe acute listening helps us be more open minded and actually able to hear different perspectives. My teaching pedagogy operates under the assumption that nothing is “apolitical.” Rather, we are all rooted within these broader political systems that shape our individual perspectives. My PhD has given me a wealth of resources to think about race, gender, sexuality, and class; my courses are a deep dive into politicized topics like Asian American studies and postcolonial theory, where it is many students’ first time talking about them within a college classroom setting [V4]. This shapes my approach in the classroom, not just as being inclusive of difference (which is a given that I practice in my classrooms), but as collectively examining what we regard as “objective,” “universal,” “truth,” “right,” and “wrong.” [V1, K2] 

Of course, I recognize that participating in a seminar-style college classroom—especially trying to put together words on sensitive topics like identity, race, and politics—can be a vulnerable act, and it can feel intimidating for students. This is where structure comes into play. I believe that an established set of expectations is crucial for a classroom to feel safe. For example, I begin the semester by collectively establishing “classroom guidelines” on what makes for a safe, active, and participatory space (such as the one linked here) [K3, K5]. We then utilize these guidelines for the rest of the semester; by giving their input, students feel more responsible for their own classroom etiquette and learning experiences.

For me, feedback embodies how learning—and teaching—are a process, not a result. In previous classes, I have assigned students an anonymous mid-semester survey asking what is helpful for them. I then revise the curriculum and/or teaching strategies after their feedback [K3, K5]. This way, students play an active role in crafting and maintaining classroom etiquette [V2]. I have been encouraged by anonymous end-of-semester student reviews, which wrote how “Jaeyeon was very receptive to feedback throughout the course and adjusted her teaching style accordingly, which made us feel like our perspectives mattered,” and “I liked how Professor Yoo was encouraging and accepting of all thoughts and questions. She made the learning space feel welcoming and safe.” My philosophy for feedback, as shown above, is multi-directional. 

With my emphasis on process and building from research done on effective writing center pedagogy, I focus on the narrative growth of each individual student, versus comparing them against one another [V3, V4]. First assignments will begin as weekly writing exercises that are graded on completion, allowing space for students to experiment with course materials in a less high stakes manner. This is also why I like to emphasize revision as a key element; I often allow students to revise their essay for a higher grade, and/or incorporate revisions into their final projects [K2, K3]. For giving feedback on written assignments, I prioritize clarity and conversation. I make sure to include in-line comments and a paragraph at the end [K3]; the feedback will usually contain questions, as a way of opening up further avenues for thinking [K2]. As a graduate writing consultant, I was trained to talk about writing in a non-evaluative manner. This meant that I refrained from judgements on whether something was “good” or “bad.” Instead, I treated the writer as the authority of their own text; I was a sounding board for crystallizing their ideas [K2]. While some aspects of teaching do remain evaluative, I strive to demonstrate how feedback can be a form of generative, generous collaboration. Ultimately, I hope to foster the idea of giving feedback as an artistic and intellectual skillset, one through which the students and I can grow together.

I have actively sought every opportunity to improve as a teacher, such as participating in both the College Teaching Certificate and Preparing Future Faculty program at Duke. With every course I teach, I ask tenure-track faculty mentors to observe classes and write a teaching observation, so that I can gain tangible ways of improvement. I participated in a “Teaching Triangle,” where I observed and was observed by graduate instructors from different departments. After the observations, I consulted with these mentors and peers about how to best supplement and further my pedagogy. [A5, K3] I have also worked closely with a mentor at North Carolina Central University, a HBCU, expanding my breath of knowledge about higher education institutions and diverse learners. [A5]  In the spirit of process-oriented learning, I am certain that my pedagogical methods will evolve as I continue teaching. I hope to have the chance to further develop my educational philosophy at a teaching-focused university, learning from students and colleagues alike.