Reflect on what resonates with you regarding the readings, and more importantly, what are your initial thoughts about finding your teaching voice?
The year 2020 has been rather interesting in the grand scheme of education. With a global pandemic on the rise,…
Over my years of teaching, one thing has always been a pet peeve of mine: laptops, phones, smart watches… etc. As someone who doesn’t necessarily believe that controlling every little thing students do is necessary for a good learning environment, … Continue reading
I was assigned some readings on ‘connected learning’ for class the other day, and I am happy to report that they were not only worthwhile reads, but also short and to the point. This post is focused on one of these readings, a blog post by Tim Hitchcock, Professor of Digital History at the University …
As I think about the nature of this topic, I immediately recognize the emphasis on the ‘self.’ This introspective analysis seems to be all about me as a teacher. Questions to be asked are ‘Who am I?’ and ‘What is … Continue reading
This is my start of my second year teaching Public Speaking at the School of Communications at Virginia Tech. I have learned many things in the first year both about teaching and about myself. I have realized that there are many important parts to being an effective teacher. For instance, preparation, approachability, and overall, even …
The reading from the New York Times, “Leave Your Laptops at the Door of My Classroom”, was adamantly against allowing students to use laptops during class. I have had professors in the past who feel the same, and have “no electronics” policies. As someone who uses their laptop in class to take notes exclusively, I …
Continue reading “Response to “Leave Your Laptops at the Door of My Classroom””
I compare myself a lot to other people. That was the environment I grew up in. In Malaysia, rankings of students after a big strings of exams were posted on the board for all to see. You, your friends, your peers, your teachers, your parents, and everyone in the school WILL know where you rank …
Being a subject matter expert does not guarantee that the person can successfully transfer that knowledge to someone else and is no benchmark for being a great teacher. Great teachers have the ability to impart knowledge to their students in a manner that leaves an impression on their hearts and minds for life. My …
Continue reading “Voice of Enlightenment: Reflections On My Inner Teaching Self”
As I read Finding My Teaching Voice by Sarah E. Deel, I was stuck by a couple of similarities between she and I within the first few paragraphs. First, her first teaching responsibility was for three sections of an introductory biology course – I am currently a TA for three sections that are about the …
The post by Sarah Deel resonated well with me. I felt like she was talking about me while reading her first 3 paragraphs. My first experience with teaching came in my second semester during my Masters program at the University of North Carolina, Charlotte. I was the teaching assistant in one of the Civil Engineering […]
This Semester I am taking a class on Contemporary Pedagogy from the Graduate School at Virginia Tech. Part of my work will be to do blog posts about contemporary education and my experiences in education overall. The topic of this week is about discovering my teaching person. This topic reminds me of the Harry PotterContinue reading “Discovering my Teaching Self”
Reading about teaching voice made me reflect on the years I’ve spent so far as a student. There have been a few teachers that stand out in my memory– each one unique not only in the subjects they taught but in how they taught. After reading the pieces from Deel and Fowler, I realize thatContinue reading “Discovering My Authentic Teaching Self”
By my calculations, between the years of 2011 and 2020, I have participated in at least 61 classes at three different institutions of higher education. I’ve taken courses ranging from “Existentialist Philosophy” and “Islam and Christian Theology” to “Finite Element Methods” and “Geotechnical Earthquake Engineering.” To say that I’ve been exposed to several different teaching […]
When I sit and contemplate on growing into the authentic version of who I am as an educator, visions of my own anxiety and developmental milestones come to life. Of both the readings, Dr. Deel’s “Finding My Teaching Voice” touched me the most because I could hear the echoes of my own concerns in herContinue reading “Authentically Jenny: The Process of Unraveling and Becoming”
As a current graduate student and undergraduate teacher, I find myself oscillating between the two poles of student and teacher. I find myself constantly wondering how to approach the classroom and what I consider to be the most valuable aspects of teaching. I often ask myself what worked in my classes and how can I …