TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

As an educator and arts advocate, I deeply believe in the transformative power of arts education and its ability to foster creativity, challenge pre-conceived notions and promote equity. My teaching philosophy is rooted in liberatory pedagogies, and prioritizes critical consciousness, empowerment, and artistic expression. Through embodied learning, student agency, accepting ambiguity and having a bit of fun, I aim to cultivate a classroom community where every learner feels valued, heard, and empowered to reach their fullest potential. My teaching and directing philosophy rests on three pillars: embodied learning, creative courage, and individualized high expectations. I strive to help students cultivate authenticity in performance, rigor in process, and empathy as artists and citizens. I am committed to dismantling barriers to learning and ensuring equitable access to all students while providing opportunities for growth and success. I also believe that the creative and performing arts can be a catalyst for a number of students who struggle to achieve academically and aim to fill my classrooms with creative pedagogies that appeal to all types of learners. I firmly believe in meeting students where they are and crafting individualized expectations and goals to benefit them. At the heart of my philosophy lies the acknowledgment that every student contributes distinct experiences, viewpoints, and strengths to a learning environment and that every student deserves to have agency in shaping their education. I strive to co-create the classroom and performance spaces with my students, valuing the diverse capital they bring whether it be cultural, linguistic, or experiential. As an educator, I recognize the importance of creating a compassionate and inclusive learning environment where all students feel respected, valued and empowered to make contributions. By fostering a culture of collaboration, and reciprocated respect through open dialogue, I aim to create a space where diverse perspectives are celebrated, and students feel secure taking risks, imparting ideas, and challenging assumptions. I believe students deserve high expectations set for them that strike a balance between the achievable and the challenging, with proper scaffolds in place to help them succeed. Furthermore, I believe that education should be meaningful and relevant to students’ lives. By connecting course material to real-world contexts, personal experiences, and contemporary issues, I strive to inspire curiosity and engagement. Through embodied learning opportunities, I aim to create significant learning experiences that are authentic, purposeful, and transformative. In my years as a performer and artist, my scope for empathy has only deepened with each new performing and learning opportunity. Through choosing resources and learning materials that illuminate the rich diversity of the human experience, I hope to foster empathy with my students through personal narrative and discussion, weaving in their stories to create a unique and dialogical learning environment. Experiential learning plays a pivotal role in my pedagogy, as it allows students to actively engage with course material, apply their knowledge in real-world contexts, and cultivate their creativity through connection. By providing hands-on experiences, problem-solving activities, and opportunities for reflection, I encourage students to become committed participants in their own learning journey. The freedom I found in the creative and performing during my most formative years were the most joyful years spent in the classroom, and I hope to create that space for my future students regardless of their age or background. My time working in a learning support unit with students with diverse learning needs shaped how I structure my behavioural management strategies, and why I choose to lead my classroom with positive pedagogical practices that provide clear behavioural and learning expectations. I embrace a strengths-based approach, focusing on the assets and abilities of each student rather than deficits or limitations. By highlighting and building upon their strengths, I embolden students to overcome adversities, build confidence, and achieve their goals. My teaching philosophy has been shaped positively in the time I have spent studying and teaching in Australia and is ingrained in the recognition and celebration of Indigenous pedagogies and ways of knowing, which offer invaluable insights and perspectives that have been marginalized within traditional Western education systems. I believe in the importance of de-centering Western ideals and fostering a learning environment that honors and integrates Indigenous knowledge, cultural practices, and pedagogical practices. By interweaving Indigenous pedagogies into my teaching practice, I aim to dismantle traditional power structures of the classroom and foster a more equitable learning experience that respects and values diverse ways of knowing. Through storytelling, land-based learning, and experiential activities embedded in Indigenous traditions, I seek to empower students to engage critically with their own assumptions and biases, while also fostering a deep respect for Indigenous knowledge systems. By embracing Indigenous pedagogies, I hope to contribute to the decolonization of education and the creation of more just and equitable learning environments for all students. At the heart of my teaching philosophy lies the belief that education is a lifelong journey, and as educators, our role extends beyond imparting knowledge to nurturing a love for learning that transcends the classroom walls. I believe that true learning and true artistry emerges not from certainty, but from the willingness to sit within ambiguity. Theatre, by its nature, asks us to dwell in the unknown: to question, to explore, and to transform. I encourage my students to lean into discomfort, to resist the urge for immediate answers, and to recognize that growth often occurs in the space between what is familiar and what is yet to be discovered. I am committed to fostering a community of lifelong learners who are curious, adaptable, and empowered to navigate the complexities of an ever-changing world.  Putting the academic buzzwords and pedagogical underpinnings aside, I also believe in the power of play in standard academic and arts classes/spaces alike. As so aptly said by Spolin, “Play touches and stimulates vitality, awakening the whole person – mind, body, intelligence and creativity, spontaneity and intuition”. I approach all of my work with humor and joy and show that laughing at yourself, and failing in supportive spaces are just as important as learning content. As I’m trying to instill in my daughters, failure is where we grow! That those intangible skills embedded in dramatic and creative pedagogies are just as valued in my classrooms as learning how to spell and do math. Those intangible skills teach us how to be human and deal with human emotions and foster connections with our fellow humans. Those intangible skills give us a playbook to navigate emotional regulation, social-emotional learning and challenging experiences that aren’t going to be in a school book. Those intangible skills allow us to adapt and approach with empathy and compassion, something I strive to do when meeting my students where they are. By fostering creativity, and promoting empowerment through agency and just plain fun, I strive to cultivate a learning community where all students feel valued, inspired, and empowered to create positive change in the world. By employing meaningful and collaborative practices involving students, my goal is to instill a passion for learning that extends beyond the confines of the classroom, enabling individuals to excel and find connection in an increasingly challenging world.