Before Teaching Statement

My teaching philosophy guides me to take a culturally responsive, humanistic approach with learners. I believe it is essential to understand the background and experiences of learners and then consider the ways in which the educational environment affects learning. I use this approach both in the classroom and as I support learners in my role as the Assistant Chair of Student Affairs in the Doctor of Physical Therapy Program at Northwestern University.

As I construct a lesson or unit for the classroom, I consider students’ personal backgrounds to the extent to which I know them. That can include considering my sources of information; I ask myself do I have voices from non-dominant identities, cultures, and social characteristics, and do I reflect a variety of points of view. Likewise, I include examples of how physical therapy (PT) or the scientific underpinnings for PT practice may be affected by or interact with culture, power, and the social determinants of health. Those topics are important for students to understand relative to the practice of PT since health is not just a biological phenomenon. Additionally, it validates learners’ life experiences and ensures I take an inclusive orientation.

More broadly in our program, I promote an inclusive environment by addressing classroom accessibility in my student affairs role. PT regularly addresses disability with patients; however, PT has historically been limited in its accessibility as a profession, framing disability as something we treat rather than something that we are. Despite this, I view accessibility as a foundational aspect of all learning environments, including in PT education. My role ensures students’ accommodations are appropriately applied in our program. I am often advocating for students’ needs based on what has been determined in consultation with the university disability resource providers. At the instructional level, I integrate principles of universal design for learning. While I am still growing in my understanding and application of universal design for learning, I believe it can transform the educational environment ensuring engagement and participation by a greater number of students.

My teaching philosophy recently grew to include restorative practices. Two years ago, I was exposed to restorative practices as a relational and educational approach when our program encountered a conflict between students and faculty. It was an easy fit within my already humanistic approach to teaching and learning due to being grounded in relationship-centeredness, empathy, accountability, and collectivity. I now consider restorative principles and communication as essential to developing and maintaining relationships with students. I use it for community building within our program, as a general approach for talking with students, to address conflict between members of our program, and to address issues such as academic dishonesty and unprofessional behavior. It has transformed my view of behavior and complicated how I view the more traditional methods for managing learning relationships, particularly amid conflict.

Overall, I find satisfaction in teaching when I see the individual learner, ensure that the classroom is an inclusive space, and make space for the complexity of feelings and behaviors within the learning environment. These are all foundational to who I am as a teacher.