TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

My teaching philosophy is comprised of three principal goals: (1) the engagement of every student in the learning process, (2) the active pursuit of professional development opportunities and (3) the development of a safe learning environment.

Goal 1: The engagement of every student in the learning process

Clearly not every student's interest is piqued in the same way, nor is information retained through the same processes. Some students rely on equations to make sense of economic concepts, while others require more intuitive explanations. As a result, my goal is to truly "engage" each student in the learning process in his own way. By teaching sections for The History of Economic Institutions for three years at Cornell University and participating in the Cornell Teaching Development Workshop, I developed several strategies for achieving this goal (i.e., lecture, small group discussion and student debate). The most important of these strategies is the four-stage engagement method I use in the discussion of each new concept. First, I begin with a real world example of the principle and provide an explanation of the intuition behind it. Next, I detail the mathematical framework when applicable. Third, I use a graphical explanation of the mechanisms at work. Finally, I reinforce the concepts learned by including additional descriptions of real world examples. This format accommodates almost all students, whether they learn inductively or deductively. Additionally, for students requiring one-on-one instruction to understand fully the more difficult concepts, I make myself available via email and during office hours.

As a professor, I intend to continue my efforts to engage all students in the learning process by using a portion of the first class meeting to get feedback from students on the topics that most interest them, course design and evaluation procedures. (Notably, this technique can be employed only in smaller classrooms.) Although it is my responsibility to ensure that courses are well-organized, rigorous and accessible to diverse learners, I believe that it is important to involve students to some degree in decisions about what they are taught and how they are evaluated. This approach of involving students in decision-making processes is a manifestation of my belief that students learn best when they are involved and engaged from the beginning.

Perhaps the greatest challenge to student engagement is the diverse set of experiences, knowledge and expectations that each student brings to the classroom. Although I recognize that I may not be able to instill in each of my students a love for Economics, my hope is to successfully draw from and build on student experiences and prior knowledge in ways that will inspire learning. Certainly this is a formidable task, but I believe that it is my duty to make every effort possible to motivate learning and prevent disengagement.

Goal 2: The active pursuit of professional development opportunities

Whether I am conducting my own research, collaborating on projects with colleagues, presenting at scholarly conferences, publishing or simply perusing Econometrica for new techniques to enhance my research, I see it as my responsibility to stay abreast of developments in the field of economics. Although these activities should not interfere with the task of teaching, professors, like their students, must remain active learners. In fact, professional development is not in conflict with good teaching, but is an essential component of it. While the more formal aspects of professional development listed above are important to pursue, I also see students as a resource for my development as an educator and scholar.

Since that which is measured is improved, I believe that it is imperative to my development as a professor to frequently assess the effectiveness of my lessons. This clearly becomes increasingly important the more one steps out of the "lecturing comfort zone" and employs new techniques. Although my four-stage engagement method has served me well, it is impossible to continually engage every student without gauging what is and is not working for a particular group of students; it is critical to identify (and implement) refinements early and often as the class progresses. Thus, I periodically ask students to write something I call "minute papers." With two minutes remaining in the class I ask students to write a few sentences summarizing the day's lecture and what they did and did not enjoy about the class. The purpose of this is twofold. First, it requires the student to actively assimilate the concepts we reviewed and requires them to state in their own words the main topics of the lecture. Second, by reading the "minute papers" I am able to assess how clearly I have conveyed the principles of the lecture and evaluate which teaching methods are most valued by the students. This affords me the opportunity to (1) clarify any common misunderstandings, (2) adjust future lectures and teaching methods accordingly and (3) develop my teaching skills.

Opportunities for professional development in teaching and research abound in the academy. I see it as my responsibility to pursue these opportunities so as to continually advance my teaching skills and knowledge base.

Goal 3: The development of a safe learning environment

During nearly a decade of studying Economics I have found that most students have a reaction to the subject that is almost visceral. They either intuitively appreciate the thought process involved in grasping economic concepts, or they can't imagine why, for example, someone would waste time understanding why supply and demand shifts lead to price changes. However, Economics is a subject that can be useful for everyone, whether it provides someone with a basic understanding of why the interest rate changes, entices them to subscribe to the Wall Street Journal or gives them a new way to think critically about issues in their own field.

Consequently, I believe that we must create safe learning environments for students. By safe, I mean an environment in which each student, regardless of background, prior knowledge or interest in the field, can thrive as a learner, explore new concepts, challenge assumptions, ask questions and gain knowledge. Given economics is often more quantitative than qualitative, it is tempting to dismiss the importance of a safe classroom in our field. However, when one student has been told repeatedly that welfare causes laziness and another grew up watching his mother redeem food stamps, a lecture on the intricacies of AFDC or TANF can result in heated debate. A safe learning environment is one in which a diversity of ideas and approaches is acknowledged and accepted. Feelings and experiences are not "checked at the door" but given space in the classroom for exploration. Students teach each other and remain open to opposing viewpoints. No set of beliefs is valued above others. When the instructor sets and actively enforces these ground rules the classroom can be conducive to challenging preconceived notions and provoking new understanding. A safe classroom is one in which each student feels he has a contribution to make and an opportunity to learn. My goal as an educator is to create such an environment in each of my courses.


Each educator arrives in the classroom with unique practices, evaluation procedures and styles. These often remain in flux throughout one's teaching career and I expect mine to do the same. However, my pedagogical starting point is the teaching philosophy I have outlined, emphasizing student engagement, professional development and the creation of safe learning environments.

 
 

Courses and Sample Lectures

Teaching Evaluations