I continually strive to hone my teaching strategies to combat the ever-present student perception that physics is too difficult or too inaccessible.  Research shows that by Kindergarten, children are already forming perceptions that science might be too hard for them. By the time they are old enough to encounter this beautiful and increasingly relevant subject, many have already developed mental blocks regarding their capabilities.  I love teaching because I have the unique opportunity to share the intricacies of a field I adore and to do so in a way which anyone can appreciate.

Which leads me to the first principle of my teaching philosophy; that all students are capable of learning physics.  There are no “math people”, there are no “non-science minded” students, there are only students.  Secondly, I aim to provide a concept driven approach to teaching, especially so that non-majors do not resort to trying to perform an algorithm that they do not understand.  Finally, in order to achieve these first 2 points, I feel that my role as a teacher is to provide educational guidance and to be more than a fountain of knowledge at the front of a lecture hall.  Education research strongly supports the notion that traditional lecture alone is not the most effective use of class time.  I am an ardent supporter and practitioner of Socratic questioning, in class group exercises, utilizing problems addressing all levels of student learning (via  Bloom’s Taxonomy), and frequent classroom assessment techniques (CATs).  This means that my teaching strategies are constantly evolving as new research, techniques, and ideas become available.  Being an academic requires being a lifelong learner, and this principle extends not only to science research but to teaching as well.