PEDAGOGY PHILOSOPHY: Students are the spice of life, my teaching life anyway. Though the primary function of my classroom is
for me to instruct them in a subject I am well studied and well versed in, I never forget the symbiotic and polysemic nature
of my relationship with my students. Once upon a time, I was a student, a very troubled student. For a variety of reasons I
found myself in similar situations with those we consider our less than stellar student; uninterested, irritated, and frankly
angry that the world of academia held nothing for me. My own good fortune has led me away from that place, and now I stand in
front of other students, other people who may or may not have the same proverbial chips on their shoulders.
We all love to meet students who find genuine interest in the subject of the class, or the less enthusiastic,
yet still unproblematic student who works diligently to turn in assignments on time and study for exams, yet so many of my students
do not fall into these categories. They are louder, less on task with course material and overall, require more effort to teach.
These are the students it is our obligation to reach, especially in our community colleges. It is our responsibility as instructors
to meet not only these students, but all students where they are at in life. Let us work with them, use what they bring to the table
to help them find success. These students have taken the leap of faith and walked into our classrooms, let us not forget what sacrifices
and struggles they face and provide an environment that sees and accepts them for who they are and not what scholarship says they should be.
