Teaching Philosophy

My teaching philosophy is informed by the tenets of the discipline of sociology as much as it is a tool with which to disseminate these tenets. Sociology assists us in visualizing an accurate picture of the world around us, and in so doing, we can identify the inequalities and injustices present, and design strategies to implement change. From my educational experiences as both student and teacher, I have found the sweet spot in this mission of change in a model that insists upon high levels of demand in the presence of high levels of support. For while I don’t think I ever would have made it as far as I have without the high expectations placed on me – I know that I couldn’t without the incredible amount of support that accompanied these demands.

High levels of demand are important. On perhaps the most basic, surface level, a university has standards to maintain, including the demand for high quality performance by the students who graduate from, and go on to represent, the institution. But this is also a commitment to the future of the planet and its citizens. It is not hyperbole to say that the complicated and crucial issues facing the twenty-first century demand citizens who can think outside the box, and offer creative and critical approaches to solutions for enacting change. And not least of all, we owe this to the individuals themselves – that our students may successfully navigate an increasingly complex world with ever-increasing demands for these skills.

High levels of support are important. Students entering the university system are doing so from different experiential and educational backgrounds. One of the most basic principles of sociology is the understanding that individuals aren’t born of, and do not exist in, a vacuum. They are individuals. To treat all students the same, and place the same expectations upon them, may be a requirement of a system that is trying to produce the same outcome of each person passing through its gates. But when high levels of support are extended, we come much closer to true and full actualization of success among all graduates. Students entering college have both different degrees and types of competencies necessary to be successful in higher education. Likewise, they arrive with differing challenges to their success in college (such as financial struggle, employment demands, familial obligation, language barriers, disability, and commuting to campus, to name only a few). Providing assistance with the developmental tasks required of students is the necessary complement to the high demands being increasingly placed on the student, the university, and an informed global citizenry.

As a first-generation college student from a low-income background myself, starting out at not one, but two, community colleges, then having to hit the ground running when I arrived at a large, competitive university, I certainly understand, and often experienced, the struggles of adapting to the culture of higher ed. I don’t share all of the experiences of today’s incoming cohorts, not having been an older student, or a student parent, or lacking a high school diploma. And of course my experiences will vary from those for whom these descriptors apply. So while recognizing the need for support is a necessary first step, it of course can’t end there; support looks different for every student.

But first: “demand.” I of course set forth expectations of students to be able to leave the university with certain competencies in place – never for their own sake, or “because that’s what we do” – but hopefully in service to their success in the world they are inheriting, with the ever-increasing demands this entails. And in keeping with this theme (rather, concern) of insisting this material is relevant to students and their lives, both current and future, I utilize several techniques to encourage inclusivity of ideas and inclusion of techniques to best reach a variety of student learning styles. These include: multidimensional in- and out-of-classroom media utilization, a “decolonized syllabus,” and elements of “flipped classroom” teaching. My multimedia materials include a shifting variety of videos, animations, quiz and group activity tools like Socrative and Kahoot, and the availability of different media formats for students to use in their own expression of evaluative measures – but always in ways mindful of student access to technology and associated resources. My syllabi, in the same spirit of inclusivity, are populated by women, people of color, and queer voices. I also incorporate elements of flipped instruction, whereby students have additional access to materials, and are able to apply concepts in ways compelling and meaningful to them.

Additionally, built into my courses are the following competency goals:

(1) Subject-specific key concepts
(2) Ability to communicate and critically engage with complex ideas
(3) Strategies for success in higher education and beyond

These are achieved through the following means:

(1) In-class and at-home activities, singly and in groups, requiring student application of concepts
(2) Having students apply sociological concepts to current issues impacting their own lives
(3) Encouraging students, through the structure of assignments, to seek developmental assistance

While the “demand” aspect is built into my curricula, the “support” aspect is one that must be continually reintroduced and reiterated. This is not a failing on the part of students to “listen” or “take advantage” of the opportunities being extended to them; it is instead a matter of the constantly circulating discourses that disempower and create problematic internalized notions that discourage positive help-seeking behaviors. So part of extending support (in ways that will be most successful in reaching students, especially from traditionally excluded backgrounds) begins with me. I am upfront with my students about where I came from, what my personal and educational background looks like, and in what ways I utilized support to get through the tougher aspects. This is followed by an introduction to campus services, as well as those available from me. This information is then repeated throughout the course (via regular in-class announcements and email reminders, a dedicated page in the syllabus, and the structure of select assignments, which encourage the student to identify and take advantage of a campus resource of their choosing).

This pedagogical approach is applied to all of the courses I teach, including Sociology of Culture, Sociology of Popular Culture, Sociological Research Methods, Sociology of Film/Television/Audiences/other Media-related topics, Sociology of Health, Sociology of Mental Health, and Sociology of the Life Course and/or Aging.