Teaching Philosophy

      As an educator in the visual arts, specifically with new media, my primary objective is to
create an inclusive learning environment that empowers students to ask questions and make
mistakes without worrying about being wrong. With this in mind, I do not assume that students
have prior knowledge or an understanding of subject-specific jargon in course discussions.
Through my multi-modal teaching style, students gain a basic understanding of art, media
creation, history, and research techniques. Students are also exposed to what is happening
globally and how their daily media consumption influences their perspectives and projects. In
addition, the software taught in each course enables them to create fulfilling work while learning
skills they can utilize in future career opportunities.
     I enjoy instructing a diverse student body since it creates a more constructive learning
environment that allows for valuable discussions, both in-person and online. Within all my
classes, discussions continue online since each course has its own server on Discord, an instant
messaging social platform. Discord allows students to talk about theory, show work in progress,
share resources, and assist each other with software questions when I am not able. As an
instructor, I must build a community within each course that allows students to feel comfortable
expressing their perspectives when ideas or confusions arise. Thankfully Discord allows for more
casual conversations within the class community. I make an effort to ensure that all voices are
heard in our class conversations, and Discord provides another outlet for students. Some
students prefer to avoid speaking in class, and I want to give them a place to be involved with
class discussions and share their thoughts with their peers. Since implementing a class server,
many students have told me that they prefer to engage this way since they don't feel pressured to
respond with the "right" answer quickly, and instead, Discord allows them time to formulate their
thoughts.
     In all my courses, students show their work in class and learn proper critiquing methods to
evaluate their and others' artworks. Students also post work-in-progress updates on the course's
Discord server and respond to other students' posts throughout the week. These virtual
conversations allow them more opportunities to refine their projects and reinforce growth in their
visual analysis and critical thinking skills within a more casual platform before presenting their
work in formal critiques.
     I make a conscious effort to create and implement engaging and fun classes. I create
courses that inspire students to learn information and techniques and partake in productive
dialogues that enrich them as artists and strengthen the foundations for their future endeavors. In
a computer-based art class, one additional objective is to ensure that students develop a
fundamental understanding and level of comfort in using their newly obtained skills with various
softwares. Ultimately, my goal as a teacher is for students to cultivate a vast knowledge of the
world and a general appreciation for creating and evaluating art.