SA VIDYA YA VIMUKTAYE
(Knowledge is that which liberates!)
The above quote
from Hindu scripture, The Vishnu Purana,
accurately states my teaching philosophy. I believe that the goal of education is
to emancipate one’s mind from ignorance, help discover the wisdom within and
outside, and apply that knowledge in different walks of life. This means that students
should be able to apply the learnings from class in aspects of their lives
other than academia. Hence I work to relate classroom teaching to its real-world
application.
Coming from a
constructivist worldview, I see students as active participants in the process
of learning. They create and organize knowledge based on their experiences
instead of passively receiving pre-existing knowledge of the world. The role of
the teacher is to provide the students with opportunities and resources which
can facilitate the process of knowledge creation.
In order to help
students create their own knowledge, I encourage discussion among their peers
in my classrooms. With this view, most times my role is just to guide the
discussion in right direction. I try to mold the conversation in such a way
that students can identify the broad themes themselves and encourage them to
speak their opinions about a topic under consideration. Thus it ensures that
they actively participate in knowledge creation instead of passively receiving
the information from me. I also ensure the classroom environment is friendly
and their opinions are considered and valued. I make the class environment
jovial and engaging by regularly telling jokes and talking to students about
their out of class activities. In order to make sure that students’ opinions
are respected, I incorporate students’ responses during discussions.
The practice of
respecting students’ opinions is reflected in my grading too. While I tell them
where they could have improved their assignments, I make sure to point out what
I liked about their work. While grading numerical problems, I stress reasoning
and logic and not just the correct answer. This is why I encourage students to explain
their though process especially when they are trying to solve numerical
problems.
The way a student
creates knowledge is related to their family and cultural background,
proficiency in the medium of instruction, classroom context etc., which means
each student creates a sense of the world in a different way as each student
comes from a unique background. My aim is to understand these complexities and
shape my instruction to cater to the needs of each student. In order to better understand
each student, I take a short break during each class session where I ask one
student to talk to the entire class about themselves and share their likes and
dislikes, their hobbies, their aspirations and other interesting details about
them with the class. I also organize movie nights and dinner events for the
class so that students can spend time with one another in informal settings. These
activities not only help me know them better but also open up an avenue for
students to talk and be friends with each other, and hence become comfortable
in classroom.
Moving beyond
instruction, I believe that the relationship between and a teacher and his
students is not just limited to the classroom settings. Students, at times,
look up to their teachers for guidance in other walks of life. I try to become
a friend, an advisor and a mentor to my students. I spend a lot of time and
energy in creating a comfortable space between me and my students so that they
feel free to share their concerns with me. This is why I strongly encourage
students to see me during office hours and take a keen interest in their
overall development.
I regularly take
oral and written feedback from the students about my teaching and their
understanding of the course content. I also sometimes ask my colleagues to observe
my classes and suggest improvements. By reflecting on my teaching and incorporating
the suggestions given by my students and my colleagues, I continually try to
improve my teaching.
