Teaching Philosophy
I believe that I can help my students reach for the stars by being a STAR teacher.
Strategic Learner
Students should not just work hard; they should work smart. I am here to introduce them to different strategies to build their language skills. In my classes, I also implement motivation-building strategies to help them develop higher self-efficacy and confidence.
Technology Tools
In my classes, I appropriately use technology to create more learner-centered instruction. Technology can help students become more active in their learning process and shift my role from a presenter to a facilitator.
Authentic Materials
Students learn best through recognizing the relevance of classroom instructions to their long-term communicative goals. I aim to expose students to real-world context by bringing in relevant and natural materials.
Risk-taking Environment
No one is perfect; mistakes are part of how we learn. In my classes, we embrace and celebrate mistakes. I do so by creating a fun learning environment and implementing multiple low-stakes assignments and assessments.
Teaching Demos
TOEFL Independent Writing
This two-minute excerpt is from an advanced-level writing class. One strategy I often incorporate in my language classes is rubric training, which can help students understand task expectations and enhance their confidence in completing tasks. In this video, I gave students different TOEFL writing samples and guided them to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the essays.
This aligns with Principle #1 (Strategic Learner) of my philosophy.
STARR Method
This four-minute excerpt is from a college-level writing class. I was teaching my students one of the structured manners of writing a cover letter, the STARR (Situation, Task, Action, Results, and Relate) method. I put students into groups and asked them to write a STARR story for a given character in a fictional story on Google slides. We then talked about one another's writing as a class.
This aligns with Principle #2 (Technology Tools) of my philosophy.
Persuasive Writing
This two-minute excerpt is from a college-level writing class. I used authentic material (TV advertisements) to help students see the use of persuasion modes (ethos, pathos, and logos) in real-life situations. I also used integrated skills and incorporated different learning styles to enhance student participation and engagement in a writing class.
This aligns with Principle #3 (Authentic Materials) of my philosophy.
Future Time Clause
This two-minute excerpt is from an intermediate-level grammar class. I was leading a collaborative writing activity where students worked in pairs writing funny sentences for given pictures. Students worked in teams, so they had a chance to learn from their peers. They were also less afraid of making mistakes when there was no right or wrong answer about the pictures.
This aligns with Principle #4 (Risk-taking Enviornment) of my philosophy.
Sample Syllabi
This syllabus is for a first-year college writing class of adults with mixed linguistic backgrounds.
This syllabus is for an intermediate English grammar class of adults with mixed linguistic backgrounds.
Lesson Ideas
I designed and launched an eight-day intensive English course for Japanese college students applying for internships in foreign countries. We met for five and a half hours for each lesson. Since most students were interested in the Disney College Program, many of my instructional activities were designed around the theme of Disney.
This grammar lesson plan is for an intermediate English class of adults. I taught this grammar concept (future time clauses) by using an inductive approach. I then led a collaborative writing activity where students worked in pairs writing funny sentences for given pictures.
This writing lesson plan is for an advanced English class of adults. I was teaching my students one of the structured manners of writing a cover letter. I introduced the STARR method and asked them to write a STARR story for a given character in the fictional story.
This listening and speaking lesson plan is for an intermediate English class of adults. I was conducting a jigsaw activity on the topic of eSports. They watched multiple videos and listened to their classmates' sharing. Students had to choose their stance on whether or not eSports should be added to the Olympics at the end.