PROFESSOR OF THEATRE/ACTOR/DIRECTOR

Teaching Philosophy

 

I have been fortunate during my academic career to experience a variety of college atmospheres. At the University of Texas at Dallas, I studied in a small undergraduate only program. While earning my MFA at Michigan State, I was part of a traditional large university program in which graduates and undergraduates shared the same stage. My PhD studies were at Wayne State University, home to the Hilberry Theatre, which at the time was the only graduate repertory company in America. For the last fifteen years I have worked in the small college liberal arts atmosphere of Westminster College. Through these diverse experiences I have developed an appreciation for the varying needs of college students. 

 

Like the theatre, I see the learning process as a collaborative art. When teaching, I try to shape my classes to provide the maximum opportunity for every type of learner, whether visual aural or hands on to succeed. I must admit though that I do tend toward learning by doing, providing students the opportunity to make mistakes and discoveries, and to learn from either. Learning is more than acquiring information; it is developing an understanding of a subject, questioning, and finding fresh ways of looking at the world. To that end, I expect my students to become active participants in their education. The student who is willing to question and challenge can go far in my class. Questioning helps students build their critical thinking skills and enables me to develop my own. I believe that every student has something valuable to contribute to the learning process. When I lecture, I strive to keep the communication two way. In fact, I try to think of my classes as discussions more than lectures. 

 

In every class there are minimum competencies that must be met to pass, but between the minimum and maximum there many levels of proficiency. Students arrive with varying degrees of ability and talent, therefore I believe in evaluating on progress over product, particularly in acting and public speaking classes. Though one student may be a “better” performer than another, the weaker may earn a higher grade. Perhaps the first student had several years of school or community theatre experience before entering the class or possibly, he or she simply has more natural presence. I evaluate students on their growth from the time they enter my class to the time they leave, expecting each scene or presentation to be better than the last. 

Writing is one of the minimum competencies noted above. Any college graduate should be able to communicate clearly and concisely in both oral and written formats. Some students, particularly in Introduction to Theatre classes, seem to believe than because it is “only” a theatre class, rules of organization, grammar and punctuation do not really apply as long as the content is good. For my part, I do not believe that I am doing my students any favors by allowing them to leave my class without attempting to improve their writing skills and all my classes have a writing requirement. I expect students to state their arguments cogently and to support them. 

 

Even though I hope students will challenge each other and me, I demand that those challenges be presented with respect. I like to keep the atmosphere light. I believe that students are more likely to learn in an environment where they feel comfortable. I require that my students listen respectfully to other’s opinions and endeavor to ensure that they feel comfortable voicing their own. 

 

I came to teaching relatively late in life. As part of my graduate assistantship at Michigan State, I was required to teach Introduction to Acting. Few teachers have entered a classroom on the first day with more trepidation than I. “What am I going to say to these Kids,” I thought. I learned quickly that what I had to say was less important than listening to what they had to say while I helped them discover the joy and excitement of acting. They helped me to discover a joy and excitement in teaching the art that I love