TEACHING PHILOSOPHY
My teaching approach
My teaching methodology is student-centered and takes into account students’ diverse learning styles. I firmly believe that the process of learning which best encourages well-rounded skill development is one which moves through all the learning styles. All students need to be taught in all four learning styles in order to be comfortable and successful while at the same time being stretched to develop other learning abilities. In this way, they also learn from each other as they each excel at different places in the learning cycle. This conception of knowledge and the learning process shares its rationale with the experiential learning theory developed by David Kolb and with Daniel Schön’s conception of knowledge in action. The concept of experiential learning explores the cyclical pattern of all learning from experience through reflection and conceptualizing to action and on to further experience. Schön’s concept is rooted in a notion of knowledge in action as a tacit knowledge. It revolves around the idea that in professional practice one takes certain courses of action in an intuitive fashion based on practical know-how. So, it becomes essential to reflect on these actions. For this purpose, after each class activity, I give ample room for reflection on the steps taken to carry out the activity at the individual, small group, and whole class levels.
To achieve deep learning, students need to practice new skills, receive feedback, see the consequences of applying new knowledge, and in this way integrate new knowledge and skills into their way of thinking. Experience is used so that students can test out ideas and assumptions rather than to passively obtain knowledge. Thus, I combine traditional lectures -in a non intimidating way and in a very respectful fashion- with other active teaching methodologies, such as group discussions, cooperative group solving problems, analysis of video segments depicting scenes relevant to criminology and criminal justice topics, debates, collective construction of web sites and drafting exercises. I carefully design the classroom activities so that my students can reflect on their experience in a critical way. I encourage them to have an active role in the production of their own knowledge, and in the design of their own learning strategies. For this purpose, I provide continuous formative feedback and foster collaborative projects to promote learning both inside and outside the classroom.
International orientation
I carry my interest in both international and domestic problems into the classroom. So, I always encourage my students to see the international dimensions of the social problems which we deal with. The conventional divide between the two often results in oversimplifications and artificialities. I believe I can help my students see not only the ruptures, but also the continuities between international and national problems by incorporating a global perspective into the fundamental undergraduate and graduate core subjects. Thus, I constantly bring examples, cases, and articles from all over the world.
Media Literacy: Teaching in a visually and technology-oriented culture
I place audiovisual languages at the forefront of my classroom teaching. Enrolled in the Visual pedagogy movement, I recognize the unique advantages that audiovisual media have for the development of intellectual skills. The power of audiovisual media enables a very high level of interactivity and critical thinking. I conceive media literacy as the process of critically analyzing and learning to create one’s own media texts.
My teaching methodologies mirror the new realities of a fast-paced culture. For example, in my Criminology and Criminal Justice classes, I implemented a teaching method that makes extensive use of TV shows and commercial films, without compromising the objective of achieving excellence in the discipline.
Although I constantly change the rhythm of the class and vary all classroom activities to avoid repeating the structure of my classes, they usually have a common pattern. I always start by posting on the blackboard the objectives of the class, how this class fits with what we have done and what we will do, the topic of my talk, the class activities we will carry out, and what we will cover next class. My talk is usually short and straight to the points I want them to discuss. Then we all embark on the class activities. One of the most successful is an analysis of video scenes from popular TV shows and commercial motion pictures depicting criminal events. It’s amazing how many crimes are committed on TV every day! For example, when we discuss the concept of sexual assault, I show a series of video scenes carefully selected from popular TV shows, such as Friends, Seinfeld or The Simpsons, and commercial films, such as Election or The Accused. Students have to identify whether there is sexual assault, apply different criminological theories to determine the root causes of the crimes, and to critically analyze the attitude of the criminal justice system toward victims of these crimes.
These practices serve several purposes: pedagogical and criminological. From a pedagogical point of view, they relate to the way students look at the world without diluting the quality of learning. They cater to learners who are immersed in a visually and technologically oriented culture. These activities also motivate students to read the articles and books necessary for the analysis of the video segments. Additionally, they help students achieve a high level of media literacy, which is essential in today’s world. These activities also propose a more diversified, open, cooperative, and plural teaching and learning process, where students actively engage in small group discussion where they freely share their ideas and engage with the proposed material.
From a criminological point of view, this helps students demystify the traditional image that crime occurs between strangers and on the streets, and that the perpetrator is usually a marginalized lower-class member of society. It helps them see that crimes take place in all social classes and milieus, and that most of the time victim and offender know each other very well.
Writing Across the Curriculum
Subscribing to the Writing Across the Curriculum postulates, I conceive writing as a knowledge- transforming tool, and a privileged method for learning and thinking about social problems. I also consider that the social science field is not only a conceptual but a discursive space as well. So, I promote writing in all my courses and foster its learning through extensive feedback given to my students’ drafts and through peer review, i.e., the review and edition of drafts by fellow classmates.
Evaluation
I strongly believe that students should have an active role in their evaluation process. As far as compatible with Departmental, Faculty, and University polices and standards, I try to adopt co-evaluation practices, where I share –at least part of- the responsibility of evaluation with students. I try to promote many opportunities during the term to allow students to negotiate some aspects of their evaluation. For example, after every test I devote the whole or part of the class where I return the tests for students to read my comments and feedback, and to discuss them with me.
I also always work with test banks created by the students. Every four or five classes, I ask my students to contribute questions to the test bank. They work in small groups and they discuss what they think were the most important topics and issues dealt with in the prior four or five classes. Then, they propose questions for the test bank. If the questions have a general consensus they are part of the test bank. Finally, for the tests I choose questions from the test bank without adding or changing anything.
The purpose is threefold. First, it helps students reflect critically on the topics we have discussed. Second, it gives them more control on the evaluation instruments. Third, it democratizes the already asymmetric professor-student relationship, which is so pervasive in the North American college classroom. The result is that test bank questions are always challenging, rigorous, and intellectually stimulating. Students perform with excellence in the exams as they have taken ownership of an important part of their evaluation process.
Friendly atmosphere
One of my main
objectives in every class is to create a friendly and respectful atmosphere, as
this is essential to learning. I make my students feel welcome, relaxed and
comfortable. Every lecture, every class activity conveys respect and tolerance
to others’ opinions, trying to understand their logic. In my courses the
other’s thoughts are part of a totality and not something complementary to my
-or anyone's- position. As much as possible, I
also try to give room to the recognition of emotions as something strongly
connected with learning and knowledge.