A PHILOSOPHY OF TEACHING

ROBERT GONZALEZ

The mediocre teacher tells.
The good teacher explains.
The superior teacher demonstrates.
The great teacher inspires. 
	--- William Arthur Ward

I love to teach because I love to learn.
I am most alive when I am sharing my enthusiasms with others.
I believe my highest duty as an educator is to rekindle the inherent curiosity of my students
and guide their discovery of the ideas and skills to which I introduce them.

The best way I can fulfill this duty is to:

1) Constantly feed my enthusiasm for my subject and let it show to my students at all times.
   Set myself "on fire" and they will stay to see me "burn."

2) Model learning. Continue my own learning about my subject, my students,
   and other relevant subjects for my own intellectual growth and to set an example for my students.
 
3) Recognize the actual and potential abilities of students and take pains to identify and nurture them.

4) Respect my students by calling them by name.
   Exploit the interactive nature of formal education by getting to know "where they are coming from":
   their interests, fears, perspectives, past experiences.
   Listen to what they say and respect their perspectives by trying to understand how they formed them.

5) Know as much about my subject as possible without becoming dogmatic about my perspective.
   I must be awake to my own biases as much as possible and reveal them to my students,
   especially when I fear they many "contaminate" a purer reception of the material.
   Strive for objectivity by presenting as many different perspectives as possible.

6) Present my material within a logical structure that can most easily be followed
   while yet allowing myself enough flexibility to follow the spontaneous call of serendipity.

7) Present my material in the freshest way possible, as if for the first time.
   Always keep improving the content, delivery, and interactive methods of the class.
   Be willing to rethink my entire approach if convinced it will be more effective.

8) Inspire self-discipline in my students by creating an atmosphere that motivates involvement
   in the mutual pursuit of learning objectives.
   Do not ask them to do anything of which I am not able to logically justify the relevance.

9) Encourage my students to teach one another by sharing any expertise and knowledge
   they have that advances the learning objectives of the course.

10) Make every lecture a conversation. Lead my students to discover truths on their own.
    Draw out the knowledge they already possess and mix it with the knowledge I want them to receive.

11) Stretch students from where they are to where I and they want them to be.
    As much as possible, integrate their own personal learning outcomes with mine.
    Allow flexibility in the course of study to follow worthy needs that students request.

12) Be open to learning from my students.