MCCLURE TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

Teaching Philosophy
My interest in teaching comes from my own positive experience and my love for
learning. It is important to consider that students learning preferences will vary. I believe that
learning should be fun, encouraging and safe while meeting the needs of the students. I value
communication and commitment for the process of growth. As an interpreter educator I am
supportive, committed and resourceful.
My commitment to education is evident. Currently, I am a graduate student at the
University of North Florida for Interpreting Pedagogy. A program that is specially designed for
American Sign Language interpreters to be able to teach the interpreting process in colleges and
universities. During my course of studies, I have developed and delivered a series of workshops
which helped me develop my own teaching skills, as well as encourage others to improve the
quality of their interpretations.
I am dedicated to teaching and mentoring. I served for two years on the Arizona Registry
of Interpreters for the Deaf (AZRID) mentoring committee. My goal is for students to be able to
continue to grow after graduation. I am a trained mentor and have worked with over a dozen
mentees. In this processes, I am able to work with interpreters one on one where we both are able
to learn and grow as interpreters and educators of the field.
As an instructor, I want to create a safe learning environment by establishing classroom
norms. Students would have the confidence that they can try new things and not be afraid to fail.
It's important to discover students core values and establish a norm amongst the class. This is
also applicable to real-world interpreting scenarios because students can learn to respect others
core values. The more students know about classroom standards/norms and core values, the more
they will learn about their own core values and the values of others.
Interpreting students should understand how their interpretations and decisions impact the
community and set the precedence for the next interpreter. Therefore, I strongly encourage

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students to be involved with the Deaf community. As a teacher and working interpreter I am
involved with the Deaf community by attending events or volunteering my time.
Students should be actively engaged in the learning process. I have taken coursework in
active learning techniques for adults and I incorporate these techniques into my teaching. For
example, I have created hands on activities for students to apply their learning. I find that
students learn and retain material more effectively when they are able to readily apply what they
learned. I want students to be involved in the learning process and communicate any difficulties
throughout the course so I can make adjustments as needed.
I provide a learning environment that is exciting yet rigorous. I treat each student with
respect and create an atmosphere where students feel safe to discuss topics. I discourage
crosstalk and enjoy having open discussions. Classroom dialogue allows for learning to be
shared while applying critical thinking skills.
I encourage students to attend as many workshops and training opportunities as possible.
I have found from personal experience that having a variety of teachers and resources has been
beneficial to my growth. I appreciate having a variety of teachers and tools to support my
learning. By having exposure to a variety of teachers, I am able to decide what it is I want to
learn and use from them.
I want to create an environment and design my courses where students become
independent. I plan to do this by developing lessons that allow students the opportunities to work
with their peers as well as independently to assess their work. Students should develop the ability
to think analytically about given situations that apply to real life through their classroom
experience. Learning autonomy is dependent on the students development to reflect on one's
work. Furthermore, the need for this is particularly important after graduation when potential
employers expect interpreters to work independently.
I would also provide a rubric to allow students to assess their work, which would

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establish the basic expectations for students as well as give them a measurement for success.
Furthermore, a rubric also divides the task into parts and provides detailed descriptions of what
constitutes acceptable and unacceptable levels of work. Students can then begin to gauge their
work and where they fall on the rubric. This provides a great deal of structure for students to
develop the ability to be autonomy dependent.
I utilize technology in the classrooms to help facilitate students growth and
understanding. For example, with each lesson I develop a PowerPoint, which supports visual
learners. I also include video examples when applicable. Visualization such as a PowerPoint or
videos help students to have a variety of ways to access material presented to them.
When students are struggling, I provide further resources for learning. I can direct
students how to find more materials and examples that can help clarify their learning obstacle.
As each class changes, I learn and grow as a teacher. I am constantly coming up with
innovative teaching activities to engage and encourage students. I am forever dedicated to
learning and its evolving processes.
Supported Research
According to Bain (2004), many teachers find inspiration from valuable professors and
mentors. Many of those teachers model their career after this mentors and professors (Bain,
2004). Highly effective teachers create a natural critical learning environment; challenging
students to grapple with new ideas, rethink their assumptions while working collaboratively with
others (Bain, 2004).
Establishing classroom norms will "arouse curiosity, challenge students to rethink their
assumptions and examine their mental models of reality" (Bain, 2004, p.60).
According to Bain (2004), it is important to have students learn and engage in ideas with
each other, which can be done through discussions. Discussions can help students to focus on
important questions, grapple with key issues as well as give students an opportunity to acquire
intellectual excitement and construct their understanding (Bain, 2004).

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Bain (2004), grading becomes a means of communication rather than ranking or scoring.
"Not so I can make judgments about them... But so that I can help them learn" (Bain, 2004,
p.157).
The goal of interpreter and translator education is to facilitate the process by which the
students join the profession (Kiraly, 2014). It is important to empower the learner to act
responsibly and autonomously (Kiraly, 2014). Instructors assist learners in the collaborative
construction of their mental models through the use of scaffolding (Kiraly, 2014). Scaffolding is
a form of support or structure for the class provided by the instructor (Kiraly, 2014). Eventually,
support is gradually withdrawn so that students can complete tasks without assistance.
Scaffolding will lead students to "autonomous action and thus learning" (Kiraly, 2014, p.46).
Scaffolding leads students from the novice to expert progression level (Kiraly, 2014). Learning
autonomy is dependant on the ability to self-reflect and complete tasks without assistance
(Kiraly, 2014). Students will progress towards mastery when they are able to self-reflect as well
as make the necessary changes to improve their work without guidance (Kiraly, 2014). Kiraly
(2000) explains that learning autonomy is dependent on the students development to reflect on
one's work. Furthermore, the need for this is particularly important after graduation when
potential employers expect interpreters to work independently (Kiraly, 2000).
According to Nilson (2010) students do not learn well when their "major learning context
is teacher centered-- that is when they passively listen to a teacher talk" (p.4). The human brain
cannot learn or function well when it is in a passive state (Nilson, 2010). To stimulate learning,
instructors should teach in multiple modalities, such as giving students opportunities to read,
write, hear, talk, see, draw, think, act as well as feel new material into their system (Nilson,
2010).
According to Webb & Barrett (2014), studies have consistently demonstrated the positive

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learning outcomes associated with instructor-student rapport. By engaging in uncommonly

attentive behaviors, connecting behaviors, information sharing behaviors, courteous behaviors,
and common grounding behaviors, instructors will "hopefully experience improved instructorstudent relationships, which will lead to more effective teaching, and, ultimately, improved
student learning" (Webb & Barrett, 2014, p.25).
According to Webb & Barrett (2014), this research "extends previous findings by offering
insight on specific instructor behaviors that students describe as building rapport in the
classroom (p.25). These behaviors provide practical guidelines for instructors on how to build
rapport with students, as well as behaviors to avoid (Webb & Barrett, 2014).
"Interactive learning sessions, small group teaching, team-based learning, and other
learner-centered methods leverage these benefits to promote stronger neuronal networks and
stronger learning and retention" (Mahan and Stein, 2014, p.147).
"Active involvement reinforces the acquisition of new concepts and skills, drives efforts
to better retain newly acquired learning, and ultimately generates memories that are more easily
accessed when needed" (Mahan and Stein, 2014, p.148). To give an example: in medical
education, learning in laboratory and simulation environments become rich venues for enhanced
learning based on active experiences (Mahan and Stein, 2014, p.148). Students are more
successful when they are actively involved in the process of learning. Success at doing builds
students confidence and in recent studies on human performance demonstrate how active
learning and doing promotes the future retrieval of acquired information and skills (Mahan and
Stein, 2014, p.147).
Structure increases learning, in fact, human thinking is wired to seek and build structure
(Nilson, 2010. Only with structure can students accumulate additional knowledge (Nilson, 2010).

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References
Bain, K. (2004). What the best college teachers do. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Kiraly, D. (2000). A social constructivist approach to education: Empowerment from theory to
practice. Manchester, UK. St Jerome Publishing.
Mahan, J. & Stein, D. (2014) Teaching adults: Best practices that leverage the emerging
understanding of the neurobiology of learning. Current Problems Pediatrics Adolescents
Health Care. 44:141-149.
Nilson, L. (2010). Teaching at its best: A research-based resource for college instructors. San
Francisco, CA. Jossey-Bass.
Stevens, D. & Levi, A. (2012). Introduction to rubrics: An assessment tool to save grading time,
convey effective feedback, and promote student learning. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing,
LLC.
Webb, N. & Barrett, L. (2014) Student views of instructor-student rapport in the college
classroom. Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, Vol. 14, No. 2, May
2014, pp. 15 - 28.