MY TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

Thom Field

INTRODUCTION
We are in this together! Active learning is not a spectator sport Learners are responsible for their own construction of meaning. My role is to facilitate that. In other words: I am the coach, you are the team. Your job: to play the game If you fail, I fail

INTRODUCTION
I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand. Learners remember. (Stice, 1987)
26% of what they hear 30% of what they see 50% of what they see and hear 70% of what they say, and 90% of what they say as they do something.

INTRODUCTION
Lifelong learning is the goal; people change careers several times in their lifetimes. Thus, it is my goal to teach the process of learning as well as the facts. If you give the person a fish, you feed them for a day. If you teach them how to fish, youll eat for a lifetime.

This is why advice-giving doesnt work in therapy.

SMALL GROUP DISCUSSION

Is learning a noun, or a verb?

MY FORMAL PHILOSOPHY
My teaching philosophy is based on the constructivist notion that students learn through self-discovery. Students construct personal meaning by reflecting on prior knowledge, and considering how to assimilate new information into existing schema (McAuliffe & Eriksen, 2010).

MY FORMAL PHILOSOPHY
There are six elements to my philosophy: 1. Expectation. Students are believed capable of growth and development, and are held to the high standards of the counseling profession 2. Engagement. Students learn through active participation and investment in the learning process; they are not merely vessels to be filled 3. Ethical Foundation. Students learn from their instructor's example; thus, the instructor must adhere to ethical principles in teaching, scholarship, and service

MY FORMAL PHILOSOPHY
4. Exposure. Students must encounter new situations and information that causes them to reflect upon and challenge their prior conceptual structures. 5. Experiential learning. Student self-discovery occurs through activities/exercises that assist them in transforming pre-defined notions to real world learning via the here-and-now 6. Encouragement. Students perform best when supported and nurtured through recognition of their risk-taking and efforts

MY FORMAL PHILOSOPHY
Now your turn: How do you learn?

REFERENCES
McAuliffe, G., & Eriksen, K. (2010). Handbook of counselor preparation: Constructivist, developmental, and experiential approaches. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. Stice, J. E. (1987). Using KoIbs learning cycle to improve student learning. Engineering Education 77(29), 1-296.