Author note: Last spring I applied for a full-time teaching position in the Theatre Program here at Plymouth State. I did not get the position–but I did get a lot out of the process including the impetus to write my first teaching statement. I have edited it below (only slightly) to address a student audience.

Teaching Philosophy Statement

Jessie Chapman

Introduction:

In my fifteen years of teaching experience, I have been fortunate to spend time in both traditional school settings and less conventional environments. This time has not only informed my teaching philosophy but also aided in honing my unique style as an educator. The discipline of theatre is very much about being present in the moment and doing—whereas professional development opportunities the past few years at Plymouth have ignited my interest in pedagogy and evaluating the how and the why of my teaching. In this statement I will expound on my core teaching values, the primary methods I use connecting with students in and beyond the classroom, and my assessment philosophy.

Values:

The three principles at the heart of my teaching are: centering students, context, and equity. In my teaching, it is important to me to cultivate opportunities for students to discover their personal worth and apply what they are learning to themselves. I believe that context and the many complicated and messy layers it adds, whether teaching Tackling a Wicked Problem or Theatre History, are crucial to meaningfully engaging students and fostering learning and growth that can be applied beyond the bounds of the classroom. Meeting students’ individual needs and providing an equitable learning ecosystem is essential for the future of both theatre and higher education. Future generations will not—and should not—accept outdated education systems that are inaccessible, lack inclusion, and are devoid of real diversity.

Cliché but ever-present for me is the maxim you teach the students, not the material. One of the great joys of teaching for me, although it is extra-curricular in my current role as a Teaching Lecturer, is mentoring individual students and helping to connect them with career and learning opportunities. Appealing to a variety of learning styles, responding to communication and feedback from students promptly, and a dedication to continuously checking in with students about their thoughts and feelings are all facets of centering students in their learning experience. The specifics of how I teach a class or approach a production are very much influenced by the specific group of individuals that make up that class or production. A skill I have spent years developing is reading the room and adapting the plan to my students’ needs at that moment. Flexibility and responsiveness are crucial in achieving truly student-centered learning.

I believe that context is what makes learning relevant and compelling. Helping students make the connection of ‘why should I care’ and ‘how does this apply to me’ propels many students to be more active participants in their education. For any course topic or production history, context adds depth to bring the content being taught out of abstraction and create tangible connections to other areas of student’s learning and lives. Embracing context wholeheartedly in my teaching also means calling out ugly truths rife in the history and current practices of the theatre industry and academia. Context for me means acknowledging privilege and bias in ourselves and the systems we are a part of and actively building a more equitable future.

Inclusivity, diversity, equity, and accessibility are the future—and not just in theatre and higher education.  All students are worthy of a great education, but students do not all learn the same way or arrive at college with the same starting set of tools or experiences, so treating all students the same should not be the goal. When teaching in NYC I had the opportunity to work in residencies with global majority students and teaching artist colleagues where I was the minority. For nearly a decade I have been practicing non-judgmental, anti-racist, and gender-inclusive language in my teaching. In all of the classes I teach, I address different learning styles and revisit concepts using various methods to reach as many students as possible; I also often teach students about multiple intelligences and do varied activities or provide student choice so students can demonstrate their learning strengths as well as areas of learning that are most in need of growth. At the start of each semester or program I invite students to share their access needs both publicly and privately, and throughout the student’s time with me I offer accommodations in many forms.

Methods:

My teaching methods have been informed most by my work with Shakespeare & Company and my time at Plymouth as both a student and Teaching Lecturer. Shakespeare & Company (S&Co.), where I trained as a Teaching Artist and Performer, has a specific education ethic and aesthetic that aligns with my personal teaching philosophy. As an undergraduate student at Plymouth, my experiences taught me the value of self-regulated and hands-on learning that I have carried with me into my own teaching and continued learning. Engaging for two years in the Cluster Pedagogy Learning Community as well as the ACE Framework workshop have provided me more tools to teach effectively during the current global crises, along with the vocabulary to better articulate many of my teaching methods.

Some tenets of my teaching and work in theatre that have come from S&Co. include: the practice of checking in; embracing the ‘New Directing Model’; espousing the ‘you are enough’ axiom to students; and modeling behaviors like honesty and vulnerability. Checking in takes different forms in directing vs. teaching situations, but the common underlying practice is creating an environment where students are constantly encouraged to speak from their experience about what they are thinking and feeling; the primary benefit of this tool is developing emotional intelligence.  The ‘New Directing Model’ and ‘you are enough’ maxims are both achieved through practices that value what each student contributes individually to a class or production, particularly accepting different levels and forms of participation. My inclusive casting ideology also aligns with this and at Plymouth and ATTP I have provided roles for many neuro-diverse actors whilst creating more opportunities for women, trans and nonbinary performers, and BIPOC actors by eliminating unnecessary barriers of race and gender. Modeling authenticity, flaws and all, is valuable for students whose brains and personalities are still developing. I would not ask my students to do something I would not do myself, and I treat students and colleagues how I would like to be treated. All these practices move theatre and education away from ‘getting it right’ toward ‘bringing it alive’ in a way that is humane and sustainable.

Evaluation

A significant component of my Teaching Philosophy is a preference in most circumstances for un-grading and narrative forms of assessment over traditional grading. Most learning, especially in my discipline of theatre, is subjective so numerical grading models are not particularly relevant. Transitioning to purposeful communication with students about their understanding of course material and performance in class instead of traditional grading, has resulted for me in more equitable course delivery and a marked increase in engagement, communication, and self-regulated learning for many students. Self-assessment and peer-assessment are also helpful evaluation tools for students in many classes and production related scenarios. For my entire teaching career, I have embraced non-competitive models in favor of collaborative programs. I believe both non-competitive models and un-grading lead to more student growth than striving to be the best, get the A, or have the right answer.

Conclusion

Production is the major creative output of the discipline of theatre, rather than publishing; I have made  a lot of theatre and I continue to learn, grow, and share all that I can through those experiences with my students. So much of theatre is learned through the collectively devised content of creating live theatre. With me, students see compassion modeled and learn that they have what it takes to do the things they want to achieve. When something is difficult or feels out of reach, students know they can come to me and I’ll guide them in discovering the steps they need to take to get there. My values, methods, and evaluation tools will continue to evolve—always inspired by the learners around me. Because my teaching philosophy is grounded in equity, contextualization, and centered on students I am well suited to teaching and creating live theatre, and I hope to continue that journey at Plymouth State University.