Teaching & Learning Philosophy

Having spent nearly 30 years in the college classroom (about 15 as a student), I have come to the realization that learning is an active process, a process that should engage the learner. As I reflect on my own learning, I remember “content” from those experiences where I had the opportunity to take content and make it my own, building on what I already knew. These learning environments encouraged discussion, debate, and practical application of concepts. And although I hate to admit it, I remember very little from those (undergraduate and graduate level) courses requiring me to simply regurgitate facts on multiple-choice tests. Don’t get me wrong, I performed very well (graduated magna cum laude), but I believe I “learned” what I needed to do well on the test. My approach to teaching and learning, given this realization is to create an environment which encourages student interaction, active learning and building on student experiences.

My classroom is highly interactive. Students are expected to participate not only in class discussions and activities but also in decisions regarding learning activities, evaluation and processes. Cooperative learning is stressed.

Students participate in small group discussions and projects, in-class presentations and debates, peer critiques, team projects, and case studies. These activities require that students apply decision-making and problem solving skills to issues/problems facing Corporate America.

David Johnson and others in Cooperative Learning: Increasing College Faculty Instructional Productivity suggest that as students work in “cooperative learning groups”, they learn more, understand more and remember more material. In addition, the student feels better about himself, the class and classmates.

Charles C. Schroeder in New Students - New Learning Styles, suggests that approximately 60% of students entering college classrooms today are “concrete active learners”, and prefer a high degree of personalism. Providing opportunities that actively engages students in the content “is often highly effective”.

Alexander Astin (What Matters in College, 1993) also suggests that getting students involved in their education experience requires: faculty-student interaction and student-student interaction. .

Students begin interacting with each other on the first day, and I try to learn student names (and reward students for learning each others’ name) within the first week of class. While this may seem trivial, Willemsen (1995) suggests that when faculty members recognize students by name and engage in personal conversations with them, the content seems more accessible. Joan Middendorf in Learning Student Names suggests that when students know each other’s names they interact with each other on a different level, developing a sense of community encouraging learning both inside and outside the classroom.

“ I hear and I believe, I see and I understand, I do and I remember.” – John Dewey

References:

Astin, A. W. (1993). What matters in college?: four critical years revisited. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Johnson, David (et.al.) “Cooperative Learning: Increasing College Faculty Instructional Productivity.” National Teaching and Learning Forum. 28 July 2002. http://ntlf.com/html/lib/bib/cooplearn.htm

Middendorf, Joan. “Learning Student Names.” National Teaching and Learning Forum. 28 July 2002. http://ntlf.com/html/lib/bib/backup/names.htm

Schroeder, Charles. “New Students – New Learning Styles.” September/October 1993. Middle of Nowhere Web. 28 July 2002. http://www.virtualschool.edu/mon/Academia/KierseyLearningStyles.html

Willemsen, E. W. (1995). "So what is the problem?: Difficulties at the gate." In J. Gainen & E. W. Willemsen (Eds.) Fostering student success in quantitative gateway courses (pp. 15-21). New directions for teaching and learning, 61 (Spring 1995). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.