Dr. A. Jones

Philosophy of Teaching Statement

In my role as an administrator, I understand my work to be important to the lives of students outside of the classroom. However, my work in Student Affairs has pedagogy, a philosophy and I recognize that I have been teaching for my entire career, although not always in a “formal” classroom.

My teaching philosophy mirrors my naturally reflective nature. I choose to ask myself and my students questions during the course of their college careers to help them focus on what is truly important for their lives. Those questions are:

Who am I?

What are my commitments?

Who am I becoming?

They seem like simple questions, with simple answers but when reflected upon within a process of identity development, and social responsibility, it can be very complex. To this end I engage my students in interactive learning opportunities intent on the discovery and rediscovery of the answer to these questions. These opportunities include information on the history and literature on a subject, critical reflection upon the self, including knowledge of the Selfethnic and shared experiences of those who have been involved in a liberatory transformative educational process and how they have benefited from it.

Central to my teaching philosophy is the fact that identity development is a huge part of the way students learn or don’t learn. Affective, cognitive, psychomotor and spiritual moments play a significant role in the teaching and learning process. This process is transformational from the inside out. The ability to feel, think, behave and then connect to the information in a current setting is important in engaging the student and assisting them in becoming lifelong learners. Without the knowledge of self and an understanding of what that means for other individual populations, a student might not be able to recognize justice or injustice and may not be able to recognize what a more “whole” self looks like.

Additionally, I believe in the collaborative learning process and enjoy working with faculty and administrators using instructional methods rooted in principles that examine many methods of learning. These include oral traditions such as storytelling, creating oral histories, and experiential activities. These methods help students connect with information and make it relevant for them here and now.

I have conducted many workshops and seminars in student development, leadership development, listening skills, etc. I have also conducted workshops and am qualified to teach in an adult focused program in courses such as multicultural counseling, adult student development theory, Africentric paradigm, and racial identity development. I believe in creating access and success for students through these methods. This is where my passion lies.

Lastly, I understand that equity, diversity and access are all important as part of an educational philosophy. It is my goal as an educator to create and share learning opportunities that are both purposeful and long term. Understanding my students, who they are, what they bring to the table and what they wish to achieve helps me to develop curriculum with enough structure and enough flexibility to fit their needs

and achieve the goals of discovery in the course. It is always my goal to educate holistically, the whole person.