My Teaching Philosophy:
Central to my teaching philosophy is the understanding that students are most successful when given the opportunities to direct the trajectory of their own learning through scholarly exploration, dialogue, and inquiry. My main goal as an educator of Spanish language, literature, and culture is to help my students develop critical thinking skills and a global perspective of the world around them that translates into other aspects of a meaningful life.
I believe that the road to student success begins with an inclusive and inspiring classroom environment, where students feel free to express themselves and where instruction accommodates diverse levels of academic ability and cultural competence. To this end, I use communicative and discussion-based activities in my grammar courses that balance both structured and open-ended practice. In one of my intermediate Spanish courses, for instance, I gave a presentation on Spanish bullfighting for a world traditions unit and then moderated a debate between those in favor of or against the tradition. Students successfully defended their informed opinions on this complex topic, which continues to spur discussion and debate among many throughout the world today. Regardless of tone or content, situational exercises like this one allow my students not only to practice various language skills in context, but also to articulate their thoughts individually and with one another in an open and authentic manner.
In addition to practicing language in context, I encourage my students to reflect on the political, historical, and social issues that shape language and creative production across cultures. My students did just that as they explored the function of landscape in Federico García Lorca’s play Bodas de sangre in an introductory literature course. They chose one of four critical points of view (artistic, literary, economic, or historical) from which to discuss this topic in groups while consulting supplemental materials like paintings, census records, and newspaper articles of the time. A dynamic whole-class discussion ensued inspiring students to expand the original scope of the activity to include feminist and ontological perspectives on Lorca’s landscapes. I believe that my teaching is most effective when it unfolds in this way, that is, through student conversation and inquiry that allows for personal interests or curiosities to drive instruction.
Whether on campus or abroad, I am committed to interdisciplinary and innovative teaching that reflects my research interests in turn-of-the-century and modernist literature in Spain. I integrate digital humanities methods in my pedagogy using what I have learned at the Humanities Intensive Learning and Teaching Conference (summer 2018) as well as the Digital Humanities Summer School in Oxford, England (summer 2019). I have used open source mapping tools in my upper level culture courses as an alternative to the traditional seminar paper. While teaching abroad in Ronda, Spain, for instance, my History of Spain through Art students created narrative maps using StoryMap to visualize their scholarly investigation into topics in Spanish history, art, and geography. With the future always on my mind, I constantly think of ways to devise new content and approaches that will challenge and captivate my twenty-first century learners.
In an instructor evaluation one of my former students once stated, “Stacey took my learning seriously.” This simple yet powerful statement resonates with me as I reflect on my teaching and my determination to help students grow, both intellectually and personally, as they explore the exciting and critical content of my courses. I do take my role as an educator seriously, and in the end, I hope that all of my students leave my classroom knowing that they are agents of their own learning with voices that matter and the abilities to shape their educational trajectory.
I believe that the road to student success begins with an inclusive and inspiring classroom environment, where students feel free to express themselves and where instruction accommodates diverse levels of academic ability and cultural competence. To this end, I use communicative and discussion-based activities in my grammar courses that balance both structured and open-ended practice. In one of my intermediate Spanish courses, for instance, I gave a presentation on Spanish bullfighting for a world traditions unit and then moderated a debate between those in favor of or against the tradition. Students successfully defended their informed opinions on this complex topic, which continues to spur discussion and debate among many throughout the world today. Regardless of tone or content, situational exercises like this one allow my students not only to practice various language skills in context, but also to articulate their thoughts individually and with one another in an open and authentic manner.
In addition to practicing language in context, I encourage my students to reflect on the political, historical, and social issues that shape language and creative production across cultures. My students did just that as they explored the function of landscape in Federico García Lorca’s play Bodas de sangre in an introductory literature course. They chose one of four critical points of view (artistic, literary, economic, or historical) from which to discuss this topic in groups while consulting supplemental materials like paintings, census records, and newspaper articles of the time. A dynamic whole-class discussion ensued inspiring students to expand the original scope of the activity to include feminist and ontological perspectives on Lorca’s landscapes. I believe that my teaching is most effective when it unfolds in this way, that is, through student conversation and inquiry that allows for personal interests or curiosities to drive instruction.
Whether on campus or abroad, I am committed to interdisciplinary and innovative teaching that reflects my research interests in turn-of-the-century and modernist literature in Spain. I integrate digital humanities methods in my pedagogy using what I have learned at the Humanities Intensive Learning and Teaching Conference (summer 2018) as well as the Digital Humanities Summer School in Oxford, England (summer 2019). I have used open source mapping tools in my upper level culture courses as an alternative to the traditional seminar paper. While teaching abroad in Ronda, Spain, for instance, my History of Spain through Art students created narrative maps using StoryMap to visualize their scholarly investigation into topics in Spanish history, art, and geography. With the future always on my mind, I constantly think of ways to devise new content and approaches that will challenge and captivate my twenty-first century learners.
In an instructor evaluation one of my former students once stated, “Stacey took my learning seriously.” This simple yet powerful statement resonates with me as I reflect on my teaching and my determination to help students grow, both intellectually and personally, as they explore the exciting and critical content of my courses. I do take my role as an educator seriously, and in the end, I hope that all of my students leave my classroom knowing that they are agents of their own learning with voices that matter and the abilities to shape their educational trajectory.