{"id":12344,"date":"2012-11-21t09:30:03","date_gmt":"2012-11-21t14:30:03","guid":{"rendered":"\/\/www.imrbdigital.com\/?p=12344"},"modified":"2012-11-27t18:13:13","modified_gmt":"2012-11-27t23:13:13","slug":"need-help-revising-a-teaching-statement","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"\/\/www.imrbdigital.com\/2012\/11\/need-help-revising-a-teaching-statement\/","title":{"rendered":"need help revising a teaching statement?"},"content":{"rendered":"


\n<\/a><\/em>cft graduate teaching fellow, beth koontz, reflects on how to revise a teaching statement as the job-market season begins.<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/em>so, for whatever reason, you have written a teaching statement. however, that teaching statement may be from a long time ago, or it may not be an accurate representation of your experience since then. for me, that early-career teaching statement sure was easy! as a new graduate student i thought it was quite clear what good teaching looked like in my discipline: good teachers engage students, encouraged critical thinking, and turn students into producers of knowledge. well, here i am four years later, and after a variety of conference presentations, semesters of grading tests and essays, and designing my own courses and lectures, my formerly strong sense of what good teaching is has devolved into a fuzzy sense that the best college teachers do all kinds of different things, depending on the context. so how do we hone in on a few types of our \u201cchosen\u201d teaching approaches and practices, especially when they all seem like such a good idea?\u00a0 how do we write teaching statements that are different from every other applicant?<\/p>\n

be real: authentic and reflective.<\/strong><\/h4>\n

this is probably the hardest part of writing a teaching statement, but also the most valuable. even if you haven\u2019t taught much, critically reflecting on how you <\/em>learn best or what outstanding learning has looked like<\/em> in classes you have witnessed will help you to establish what your teaching philosophy is. don\u2019t forget to personalize your teaching statement: hiring committees won\u2019t remember that guy who wanted to personalize learning in his 101 course, but they will remember that guy who struggled with dyslexia himself, and therefore makes time in every class for students to verbalize their thoughts so that those who struggle with texts can still contribute. check in with yourself \u2014 formative experiences in your own intellectual development structure how you teach and learn, and discussing those shows you can relate to your students and actively reflect on teaching and learning. edit your essay to make sure you are \u201cpresent\u201d on the page. have you answered some of these personal questions?<\/p>\n