My teaching philosophy is rooted in respect and personal responsibility. The path to respect is in exhibiting extraordinary dependability. Personal accountability is the key to an exceptional education and a degree is only as good as the student behind it. I teach that as a manager you must be accountable for the decisions you and your team make and work on commanding the trust and respect of others. It is the student’s responsibility to search out knowledge and actuate their own education. However, as a teacher I guide their journey, help them relate to the material, and urge them to be responsible.
As a Technical Director my best working relationships are founded on open and honest collaboration. I carry this honesty into the classroom and foster strong and supportive mentor-to-student relationships. By understanding and regarding the goals of my students, I gain their dedication and veneration. By sharing my professional experience, I captivate the student’s regard for knowledge. These building blocks of personal relationships are my guide to interacting with students in the classroom. It is this trust and respect that help me create an open and productive learning environment. Giving 100% of my efforts and respect encourages the student to trust me with years of their lives.
In evaluating my student’s performance, I employ grading criteria based on the belief that all people learn differently and come to the table with varying perspectives. With the majority of my grading coming from practical projects, my evaluations strive to chart the progression of each individual. While standardized testing is a necessary measure of student competency, my experience as a leader has taught me that each person comes into a situation differently and that my educational style must accommodate that.
The scene shop is an ideal laboratory for learning. Following in the tradition of the old world artisans I believe there is no substitute for the hands on application of one’s craft. I strive to match the lessons of the classroom with the opportunities provided in a season’s productions. By coupling the production environment with my lectures I set topics into the mental and muscle memory of the student, providing experiences and memories that last a lifetime.
The final cornerstone of my teaching philosophy is concise information and clear communication. I endeavor to make as much information as accessible to the students as possible. It is the clear expression of my expectations that leads to a successful communicative relationship with my students. All projects that I assign are presented to the student with the grading criteria clearly spelled out in rubric form. This format also proves effective in communicating and evaluating the responsibilities attached to production assignments. One my most valuable communication tools is an informal contract I have the students sign. The contract solidifies their commitment and ensures each student understands the role they are expected to take on and perform.
While my teaching philosophy is my ideals as an educator, as a Technical Director I recognize that the overall goals and standards of the collaborative effort and program take precedence over my own. Theatre is a field immersed and dependent on working as team to complete a goal. The young people we are shaping will be our future peers and collaborators.