Teaching
For me, teaching is a gift. It’s a privilege to engage students from different walks of life, create spaces where we can celebrate our differences, learn from one another, and lean into difficult but critical conversations with grace, inclusivity, and honesty. Teaching sustains me because it’s a joy to witness the growth of my students--to see them learn, develop, reflect, question core assumptions about themselves and the world, and figure out who they are and what they want to be when they grow up.
My attitude toward teaching and my students is a long-term one. Although I value teaching course content and academic skills, I care most about the overall well-being of my students and the young adults they are becoming. I see each of my students on a unique life journey, as they unpack their life goals, hopes & dreams, and learn to distinguish what they want in life from what others expect of them. Ultimately, my goal as an educator is to help my students grow into their best authentic selves--emotionally, intellectually, experientially, and professionally.
Pedagogically, I continue to explore new tools in the classroom, like mindfulness,experiential learning (e.g., Spires and Datta 2020), tools of restorative justice, and simulations. Following a year-long sabbatical in Southeast Asia from 2016 to 2017, and building upon ideas developed with the University of Richmond's Mindfulness Faculty Learning Community, I now incorporate mindfulness in the classroom. For me, mindfulness means intentionally paying attention with kindness.
Mindfulness is a tool, typically starting with the breath, to calm the body and mind, observe one’s thoughts, and cultivate greater clarity and insight. If Socrates suggested that “the unexamined life is not worth living,” then mindfulness can be a tool of self-discovery for a student, to know who they are, cognitively and experientially, at the deepest level. For this reason, I typically introduce basic mindfulness meditation techniques in the classroom at the start of the semester and practice a few minutes of mindfulness at the start of class. This is particularly important during the era of COVID-19, in which our mental health as a global society is in a fragile state.
Another tool I use often inside and outside the classroom is experiential learning. I invite guest speakers to the classroom, take my students on field trips to look at issues closely, and, in some classes, require my students to spend 15 to 20 hours in the community volunteering with a local not-for-profit organization. Experiential learning has been a key feature of a year-long course on human rights and modern slavery I’ve developed at the University of Richmond. And it’s something I’ve explored with UR’s Office of International Education, taking a group of students to Southeast Asia to look more closely at anti-human trafficking organizations in the region.
Another tool I’ve begun to explore in the classroom is Circle Process, a First Nation tool used to discuss difficult topics with greater inclusivity and dignity. From time to time, when current events arise, I might pause the class, invite students to a circle, introduce a talking piece, and invite my students to share what’s on their minds and hearts, passing the talking piece for several rounds until all voices are heard with clarity. As global issues like the pandemic continue, and international topics like Black Lives Matter continue to dominate headlines, I am thankful for a tool like Circle Process that can create brave and perhaps even safe spaces for my students to pause, reflect, share, and grow.
Lastly, another tool I enjoy using in the classroom these days is simulations. I often draw from the Council on Foreign Relations Model Diplomacy website, which provides a host of scenarios for students to consider as they learn and process theories of international relations. I’ve particularly enjoyed playing the North Korea Nuclear Threat Simulation over the years. I’m also exploring other simulations, such as C-ROADS, offered by the not-for-profit think-tank Climate Interactive, in which students role-play representatives from the countries of the world as they try to contend to the challenges and complexities of climate change.
If you are interested in exploring mindfulness, experiential learning, tools of restorative justice, and/or simulations in the classroom, I’d love to chat. I continue to see I have a great deal to learn as an educator, and look forward to hearing from you.