Exploring My Teaching Philosophy Spring 2014
1. Why do you believe your students want to learn? Describe them as learners in any way you can.
My students can be classified in two ways. Those that are at school to learn and grow towards a profession and then there are those who have to be here.
The first group is in most cases not really aware of what lays ahead of them- professionally and in regards to the difficulty of the curriculum. By this I mean they really have no concept of what the hospitality industry is about. The post-grads are especially interesting as the majority have no previous knowledge of the industry they are going into but they do have a glamorized vision of what they will be doing. Most have no idea of the level of work or commitment they must put in to be successful. I find so many do no research into where they want to end up.
The next group of students are not interested in anything but getting into the country and getting accepted to school here with our very liberal visa policy. It is their easiest way into Canada and to become Canadian citizenship. These students are not at school for the “right” reasons and unfortunately do not acclimate to the environment and like two worlds colliding, the result is non-productive for the student, teacher and ultimately the school.
I believe those students that are here to learn are dedicated to pursuing the best they can be and get the most out of what they are learning including pulling all they can from the teacher then matching it with practical elements in the industry (apply what they learn). Book smarts are one thing but being able to apply smarts is another.
2. What are your aims for teaching? What do you hope to accomplish when you teach? What do your aims say about you as a teacher?
My aims for teaching is to graduate students from my class that are able to apply what I have taught them (what they have learned) into the environment they find themselves. I also hope to instill in them a hard work ethic and a strive to excellence.
My aims show to me that I have high expectations of my students – as