My Teaching Philosophy

My philosophy of teaching is entailed in the following statements that provide the fundamental structure of my beliefs about teaching and learning.

• Learning is a process through which we adapt to the world around us. It is not the result of something done to us but something we do ourselves. The most crucial step in learning therefore is choosing to make the effort. It follows that although as teachers we cannot make our students learn, we can make it possible and easier for them to do so. We can either ignite or extinguish our students' curiosity and readiness to learn depending upon attitudes we project in and out of our classrooms.

• Teaching and learning for me are cooperative acts. The teacher not only imparts knowledge but also prepares and motivates students to accept and learn skills for future life. I believe from what I have gained from education that teachers do not transmit only academic information but social and personal life skills as well. University teaching is therefore about equipping students with the skills they will need to navigate the uncharted journey of adult life. It is more than teaching contents but also about teaching habits of thinking and habits of being. I therefore consider training in critical thinking as an important part of preparing students for the personal, occupational and political challenges they would soon come to experience in society.

• Students are human, unique and different. Experience with students from different backgrounds and grade levels have made me aware that students have some needs a teacher must necessarily fulfill to keep them wanting to learn. This common need apart, each student is unique and has a different motive for education. They enter the classroom with different experiences, backgrounds, learning capabilities and interests. In a classroom therefore effective learning occurs when the teacher understands the world of students, sees each student as unique and adjusts his/her teaching to meet the interests and expectations of the group.

• I find teaching and research to be inseparable components of scholarship in higher education. Research contributes to my teaching by supplying up-to-date information and experiences to share with students. It also frees me from over-reliance on text books to explore varied concepts and teaching strategies. Teaching in turn provides contextual questions for my research. Research is therefore the means by which I attain renewal and growth.