Teaching Excellence: Sharing Part of Yourself

Writing an article about "teaching excellence" is a daunting task. I don't think of myself as an excellent teacher, merely someone who strives to be. Like most academics, I have little formal training in education. My discipline is applied mathematics—one where communication with other fields is essential to the success of interdisciplinary projects. My interest in good teaching stems from this emphasis on communication. Explaining mathematics effectively to people with varying (and perhaps limited) mathematical backgrounds is what I try to do every day—through my teaching and through my research.

When I began teaching, my advisor told me that to teach well you need to share some of yourself with your students. At the time, I saw this as an invasion of privacy. I didn't want to share my personal life with my students. With experience, I have begun to look at his philosophy somewhat differently. It's more about sharing your personality than the details of your life. My most successful teaching is when I share a part of who I am—when I am uninhibited about my enthusiasm for my discipline, when the examples I use in class reflect my current research interests, when I am excited about my job. I believe that sharing part of yourself is one of the keys to teaching excellence.

If sharing part of who we are is part of teaching excellence, then it's important to realize that as we change with time what we share must also change. Over the last few years, I have become what can only be described as a "gadget girl". My interest in technology has transcended all parts of my life. Last fall, I brought that part of myself into my classes. I began teaching with a Tablet PC. I'd like to think that my excitement was infectious and created a more positive learning environment for my students.

An interesting side-effect of sharing this part of my current self with my students was that it allowed me to connect with a part of my old self. As a student I rarely took notes. When I did, I learned very little during class. There were a few excellent note takers in my classes and I took advantage of their generosity by copying their notes. I learned differently than many of my fellow students. I know from personal experience that for some students taking notes during class can be an impediment to learning. Using the Tablet PC in class allowed me to archive a set of notes created during class and to make them available on Blackboard. I shared my personal experience with my students—letting them know that I put a higher a priority on their learning than their note-taking. I was astounded by the number of my students who stopped taking notes during class and printed the notes that I had created instead. There was a significant increase in the number of questions that my students asked during class. All of these things contributed to an improved learning environment.

When I think about the things I have done as I strive towards "teaching excellence", I realize that it's not so much about the mechanics of how we teach, rather it's the spirit in which we teach. The spirit of learning is enhanced by the spirit of sharing. So next time you want to try something new in your classroom—share part of yourself!