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Writing Your Teaching Philosophy
1. Writing a Statement of
Teaching Philosophy
Margarita Nafpaktitis
Charles E. Young Research Library
2. Teaching philosophies are
becoming a common
component of job
applications & also of tenure
and promotion materials.
3. Purposes of a teaching philosophy:
Self-reflection
Introduction to a teaching
portfolio
Communication with students
4. If “philosophy”
seems too pretentious,
you might prefer
“reflective statement on
teaching”
or even just
“statement on teaching”
5. Just because you’ve
never written a
statement of
teaching philosophy
doesn’t mean you
don’t have one!
6. Critical Incident
Think back to an important learning
experience you’ve had (in either a
formal or informal educational
setting)
What made that learning experience
positive or negative for you?
How did it affect the way you think
about teaching or learning?
Can you derive a principle from your
experience?
7. Definition of Learning & Teaching
How do YOU define the phrase
“to learn”? (Think of a time
when you felt you really
learned something.)
How do YOU define the phrase
“to teach”? (Think of a time
when you felt you were
effectively teaching
something.)
8. Choose a metaphor for learning/teaching
Helping someone learn is like...
Learning is like...
9. Reflecting on your
teaching identity
Choose 3 adjectives that
best describe you
as a teacher &/or the way
1
2
3
you teach:
10. General guidelines
for writing the teaching philosophy:
Keep it BRIEF! (1-2 pages)
Use a narrative, 1st-PERSON
approach
Make it REFLECTIVE &
PERSONAL
11. Discuss:
your GOALS for your
students
the METHODS you use to
achieve those goals
and the ASSESSMENTS
you use to find out if
students have met your
expectations
12. Explain:
your specific
disciplinary
context
use specific
EXAMPLES of
your practice
Showcase:
your strengths
your accomplishments
13. And then remember...
Keep it brief! (1-2 pages)
Use a narrative, 1st-person
approach
Make it reflective & personal
15. The teaching philosophy is an
EVOLVING DOCUMENT
that will change as you gain
more experience as a teacher
& as your beliefs about
effective teaching
& learning develop over time.
16. Returning to your teaching
philosophy statement throughout
your career can help make your
current teaching practice more
explicit and deliberate.
17. Questions for
further reflection:
Not all of the questions that follow will
resonate for you, but thinking about
how you would answer some of them
may be helpful as you continue to
develop your teaching philosophy...
18. What are your beliefs & values about learning?
What do you fundamentally believe about how
people learn?
What are the beliefs & values that inform your
teaching?
Why is teaching important to you?
How do you put your beliefs & values into
practice?
19. What do you enjoy most about teaching or
find most rewarding? Why?
What do you think “good teaching” (teaching
that promotes learning) is?
What does “good teaching” look like in
practice?
How would people describe your teaching?
20. How do you assess what the people you have
taught have learned?
How do you assess your teaching
effectiveness?
How would you describe the ideal outcome
of your teaching?
What should the person(s) you have taught
know or be able to do?
21. How is your teaching affected by your
identity & background
How is your teaching affected by the
identities & backgrounds of the people you
teach?
How is your teaching influenced by the
theory & skills required for learning in your
discipline(s)?
22. How have you changed & developed as a
teacher?
What caused those changes?
How do you want to improve as a teacher?
How would you go about making those
improvements?
23. Helpful resources for further
developing your teaching philosophy:
!
http://www.crlt.umich.edu/tstrategies/tstpts
!
Find these slides online:
!
bit.ly/teaching-philosophy
