Teaching Philosophy

More specifically, I believe that composing can be learned and is not an inherent ability. Every student has the capability to write, and I can help students find what supports and strategies they need to help them be stronger writers. Part of the writing, or rather composing process, is the understanding that “everyone has the capacity to write” (Adler-Kassner et al.). I also believe literacy can be defined by different ways, not just writing literacy, and I want to help students explore what literacies they are strongest in, as well as their weaknesses, whether those literacies be textual, visual, digital, or other. This coincides with the push for incorporating more 21st century literacies within the composition classroom, especially since “it is common to see media integrated into disciplines across the curriculum” (Daley 181). This will also allow me to meet the students where they are at and give them agency in what they wish to improve on. This opportunity to a fair and just education will help students grow into individuals, capable of understanding how to think, and not necessarily what to think.

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I strive to create a safe-space for every student that comes into my class and to let them know that the main goal is to learn, pique their curiosity, and allow each student to think freely. I challenge each student to be their personal best. To help the students learn and expand their curiosity, I use a variety of teaching methods to cater to each type of learning style. I strive to mix the methods up, between brief lecture, demonstration, group activities, presentations, and projects.

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One of the most effective teaching principles/strategies that I use in the classroom is the idea of gradual release of responsibility (GRR). Pulling from multiple theories from educators, such as Jean Piaget, Lev Vygotsky, Albert Bandura, and David Wood et al., GRR considers “that learning occurs through interactions with others, and when these interactions are intentional, specific learning occurs” (Frey and Fisher 1). This strategy combines initial lecture to explain the task and then the instructor demonstrates. After the demonstration, students will work in groups to complete the task, and then they will have an individual version of the task that they should finish for either homework or the rest of class.

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One way that I have used GRR in my ENGL 101 (Composition I – KU) course is during a lesson over source mapping. I explained what source mapping is to my students, and then I showed examples of source maps. I also gave them a few different ways to create the source maps. Afterward, the students worked in groups of 3-4 on the same topic and same sources to create a group source map. Once each group finished, we discussed how each group mapped the sources. Even though students worked with the same set of sources, each group had different ways of mapping them. This activity allowed students to collaborate and think freely over how sources should be organized. After the full class discussion, I asked students to create their own individual source map using their sources for their upcoming project.

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Implementing strategies for all students to participate ties in with my belief that students should be given a fair opportunity to explore various types of learning techniques. Just as well, I will also implement composing strategies that coincide with multiliteracies. I can show all of this through having high expectations but also providing high supports for each and every one of my students.