Teaching Philosophy

Cabourg, France; Photo Credit: Self

I began my teaching career when I joined Teach For America (Eastern North Carolina, Corps 2000) after graduating from the University of Missouri-Columbia (anthropology and magazine journalism double major). After teaching 6th grade language arts and social studies for two years, I fell in love with education. For the past decade, I have also taught at educational nonprofits, the Fulton County Community School and Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice, the University of Arizona, the University of Missouri-Columbia, and St. Louis Community College at Meramec. 

As a result of my diverse teaching experiences, my instructional philosophy centers around the following beliefs and practices:

• establishing a collegial community of active and involved learners
• using service learning to connect students to the community at-large
• incorporating meaningful learning technologies into the writing process
• conducting one-on-one writing conferences with students
• modeling how to give constructive feedback to writers
• personalizing the learning experience for students in online, hybrid, and face-to-face environments

Overall, I see my role in the classroom as that of a coach and facilitator. I use a constructivist approach to teaching and learning by tapping into students' knowledge to craft individualized learning goals and writing plans based on students' interests and future academic and professional aspirations.

---