Crafting Your Teaching Statement
This was originally published in the May 2021 edition of SSWR DSC’s Monthly Monitor, available here.
A teaching portfolio is a compilation of artifacts that communicate evidence of your teaching philosophies and abilities (just as a dissertation communicates research abilities). An increasing number of institutions request a teaching portfolio or individual components of a teaching portfolio to demonstrate teaching experience throughout the academic job search as well as part of tenure and promotion dossiers. A teaching portfolio should encompass a set of accomplishments that you have attained over an extended period. It should be an ongoing process conducted in the company of mentors and colleagues (Wolf, 1996).
So you want to create a teaching portfolio. But what goes into it? Well, this varies across disciplines and universities. However, here are some universal items to include:
1. Curriculum Vitae
2. Teaching Philosophy
3. Diversity Statement
4. Teaching Reflection
5. Teaching Development
6. Course Development
7. Mentor Feedback
Curriculum Vitae: If you are applying for a teaching specific job, your CV should be teaching focused. Really highlight your teaching experiences whether you were an Adjunct Professor, Teaching Assistant, Guest Lecturer, etc. Add what classes, workshops, or activities you have participated in to strengthen your teaching skills. You can have a teaching-specific CV and a general CV. Either way, you should have a clear section that highlights your teaching experience and professional development as a teacher.
Teaching Philosophy: A Statement of Teaching Philosophy or Teaching Statement generally attempts to convey what you teach; how you teach; and why you teach the way you do. It is a written product, reflective of a critical thinking process. Your perspectives on teaching and learning will evolve throughout your career and inform your teaching practices; therefore, as you evolve so too does your philosophy. The writing process should cultivate the habit of critical reflection and articulation of your teaching philosophy. The reflective practice of articulating a Statement of Teaching Philosophy will be a useful tool for centering and sharing your teaching practices throughout your teaching career. It is important to reflect on your plans as a teacher and update your philosophy after you have teaching experience. As a student, it can be beneficial to discuss your teaching philosophy with your mentor.
Diversity Statement: Through talks with students who are on the job market, more and more institutions are requesting a Diversity Statement from applicants. So, what is a diversity statement? According to the Office of Graduate Studies at University of Nebraska-Lincoln, a diversity statement is a “one-page document explaining your experiences and commitments to diversity.” The purpose is to identify candidates who have professional skills, experience and/or willingness to engage in activities that would enhance campus diversity and equity efforts (Golash-Boza, 2016). For more information on diversity statements, look at our article “Diversity Statements: Demonstrating Commitment to Anti-Racist Practices on the Job Market”.
Course Development: Sample course materials are an important component of any Teaching Portfolio. Whether you are teaching during your time as a doctoral student or a teaching assistant for a course, it is important that you get the experience of designing course materials. Completing the Course Development requires you to create course materials for a course you have taught or will teach in the future. Specifically, you can create a course syllabus, exam, and assignment. Creating sample course materials will help you to apply many teaching concepts you have learned from your courses. This process will also help you to imagine ways to make your Teaching Philosophy – and the learning you are doing in your own field – come to life in the context of a discipline-specific course. You can update these materials and tailor it to the course you plan on teaching in the future and institution you are interviewing with while on the job market. Feel free to add a variety of materials to show viewers your versatility as a teacher.
Teaching Reflection: One important aspect of your development as a teacher is the critical consideration of feedback you receive about your teaching. This feedback should come from a variety of sources, including your faculty mentor, your peers, and others who have observed you in the classroom. You can also provide your own feedback by observing yourself teach via video recording. The purpose of teaching feedback is to help cultivate the habit of critical reflection as a teacher by writing about the feedback you have received on your teaching thus far. The process of taking time to reflect on the feedback you have received is an important part of your development, and can provide insight to your strengths, weaknesses, and future directions for development as a teacher. Writing a reflection on your teaching feedback can also be the basis for later documents used in the faculty review process
Teaching Development: Reflection is essential to one’s development as a teacher, and it is integral in the context of education. You should reflect critically on what you have learned about teaching, what you have learned about yourself as a teacher, how you have developed through the overall experience of teaching, and how creating a teaching portfolio demonstrates your growth. In your writing, you should draw connections between, and articulate the significance of, the various teaching related activities you have engaged in the classroom. Reflecting on your actions and learning activities will provide insight to your strengths, weaknesses, and future directions as a teacher. Writing a reflection on your teaching development can also be the basis for later documents used in the faculty review process.
Mentor Feedback: Having a mentor that supports you during your teaching journey can be helpful. You should select a mentor (ideally from your department) who can help guide you as you develop your teaching skills. You can ask the mentor to assist you in reviewing your teaching philosophy and teaching portfolio. Some universities have students who are teaching record one of their courses. Then they watch the video back with the mentor. Though it can feel awkward watching yourself teach, it can be helpful to get adequate feedback on what can be improved upon on-the-spot. Use these opportunities to evaluate yourself and identify your strengths and weaknesses as a teacher.
The purpose of having a faculty mentor is to help you learn discipline-specific pedagogical information and best practices in your field. Additionally, having a faculty mentor allows you to have a designated person with whom to discuss teaching-related topics as they arise. Having a faculty mentor to discuss teaching-related topics is a good practice to keep when transitioning to academic employment positions. A mentor can assist with the transition and continue to provide guidance on teaching and pedagogy.
Putting Your Portfolio Together
Now that you have learned the basics of creating a teaching portfolio, how do you assemble it? The best way to create your portfolio is digitally. There are various free online sites that you can use to create your digital teaching portfolio. You can use these various platforms: Wordpress, Google sites, Google Blogger, Weebly, etc. and find what best suits your needs.
When thinking about your digital portfolio, there are a few things to consider. Your portfolio should be professional in appearance. Your introduction page should clearly guide the reader to find components of the portfolio. It should provide a structure for the elements of the portfolio that evidences a rationale for how the pieces fit together. The format should give a compelling sense of who you are as a teacher and explain the purpose of the portfolio. All site links should be intact. All attached documents should be in PDF format and, when possible, be embedded within the site. Your writing should be free of grammatical and spelling errors and with correct citations. Be sure to have your mentor or someone you trust to review your portfolio before sharing. Another option to consider is limiting access to certain documents. You might be showing examples of course material from a course that you are currently teaching. If you do not want a student to stumble on an assignment, answer key, etc, you can look at the functions of your site and restrict access to certain documents.
Finally, if you have teaching services on your campus, take advantage of them! Try to attend some helpful workshops, conferences, etc. Begin early. Development is ongoing; identify what areas you want to grow as a teacher and find resources to assist you. Best of luck to all who are beginning and cultivating their teaching journey!
Resources
Saint Louis University, Reinert Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning: www.slu.edu/cttl
Washington University of Saint Louis: http://teachingcenter.wustl.edu/creating-teaching-portfolio
Preparing a Teaching Portfolio: Fran Mues and Mary Deane Sorcinelli The Center for Teaching, University of Massachusetts Amherst: https://www.slu.edu/cttl/docs/cuts-forms/preparing-a-teaching-portfolio.pdf
University of Nebraska; Writing a Diversity Statement: Writing a Diversity Statement | Graduate Connections | Nebraska (unl.edu)
UC Chicago Diversity Statement: DiversityStatementPresentation.pdf (uchicago.edu)
References
Wolf, K.(1996). Developing an Effective Teaching Portfolio. Improving Professional Practice, 53(6),34-37.
Golash-Boza, T. (2016, June 10). How to write an effective diversity statement (essay). Inside Higher Ed. https://www.insidehighered.com/advice/2016/06/10/how-write-effective-diversity-statement-essay