Approach To Teaching

I am a medical doctor specialized in Ear, Nose & Throat surgery from India. After serving as a medical officer in the Indian Army Medical Corps, I became the Registrar of a Cancer Hospital and also worked as a Consultant in the Speech & Hearing Institute & Research Center in Calcutta, diagnosing & treating the speech- and hearing- impaired. I have been in the U.S. since 1996, conducting research on genetics and natural medicine. I obtained an MBA from Maharishi University with a GPA of 3.7 but soon realized that I would feel more comfortable & uplifted teaching children General Science or Biology rather than practicing Medicine or Management. This realization occurred as I taught my two sons, presently in the 6^th- grade & 10^th grade, over the past 4 years. I earned an MA (Teaching) in June 2005.

As a result of my various experiences, I have acquired much knowledge of Science and its applications, which I apply when I teach, inspiring and awakening my students’ interests in Science.  I try to instill the spirit of scientific inquiry in them: to coolly and rationally employ the steps of the scientific method whenever confronted with a question in life, using the following steps: (1) Observation (2) Forming a hypothesis (3) Testing the hypothesis (4) Collecting data (5) Forming a workable theory.

I push them to behave like competent jurors - not just to swallow what some authority figure tells them to believe - not even me - but rather to critically analyze, with an open mind, the evidence set before them. Scientific theories have come and gone for centuries, replaced by better ones as new evidence arises. There has always been controversy in science and tremendous opposition to those who challenge the orthodoxy of the day. An effective way to teach science is to explore some of these controversies. For instance, I present all the known theories of creation, along with the most recent theories, and leave it to my students to decide which one they should follow.

I find it quite thrilling to be a facilitator, to bring out the best in them and to make them feel capable of mastering difficult subjects. A skillful teacher can inspire, motivate, stimulate, and develop the minds of students. The teacher must be well educated; be able to work with a diversity of students, parents, and other teachers; and be highly competent in presenting subject matter – and I feel that I fulfill all those criteria.

I enjoy teaching at the middle-school or high-school level, when the children have entered at least Piaget’s concrete-operations stage. As I have been educated in a structured environment for most of my life, I find it easiest to employ a structured teaching strategy, interspersed with Constructivism. I like to make my teaching relevant to something in students’ lives, so that they feel that the knowledge is useful for them. I have a good attention step at the beginning of the class, to draw & keep their attention on the topic. I would be kind, firm, but never mean, and give them high expectations & empower them to rise to those expectations.

I fully believe that Gardner's Multiple Intelligences theory holds a lot of truth. "It is of the utmost importance that we recognize and nurture all of the varied human intelligences, and all of the combinations of intelligences." (Howard Gardner Multiple Intelligences, The Theory in Practice. Basic Books, 1993, pg. 12) As a teacher, one should discover the type of intelligence of each student, who that person is, and how he or she can learn most efficiently. By doing this, we strengthen the relationship between the knowledge and the student - maximizing learning and receptivity to learning.

When the teacher speaks and the knowledge is received without distortion, communication between teacher and student is lively, and the imparting & reception of knowledge becomes a delightful exchange of friendly waves of life.  It is when receptivity is lively that maximum learning can take place. (Maharishi Mahesh Yogi: Principles of Ideal Teaching). Through my teaching I wish to achieve student/teacher relationships that will allow my students to grow and learn very quickly. I will, simultaneously, be growing in my own self-referral performance -- the goal of teaching. I wish to create a classroom community of life-long learners, a classroom of most evolutionary content and learning, and a classroom of comfort and of receptivity.

Student receptivity and motivation is opened further when I give learning and behavior choices. I believe that I am a student-centered teacher for this reason. Open up choice, open up receptivity, and open up a channel for knowledge that is relevant to that student. I believe this is when students will take charge of their learning and maximize their growth. Also, students will be more receptive to specific knowledge if they know the relevance of that knowledge to their own self.

I am fully aware that the following significant family influence factors affect a child's career and educational decisions: (1) geographic location, (2) genetic inheritance, (3) family background, (4) socioeconomic status, (5) family composition, (6) parenting style, and (7) parent work-related attitudes. (Splete and Freeman-George, 1985) Whereas the first four of these factors have a strong influence on a child's physical and mental abilities, education and employment opportunities, and financial resources, the last three have a profound effect on a child's personality type, preference for certain types of interpersonal relationships, work attitudes, and willingness to pursue a non-traditional career. I shall endeavor to work with parents to help them, and persuade the family to maintain a home environment conducive to the education of their child.

I firmly believe that in spite of all that a teacher says or does, nothing can be accomplished without strong family support. Schergens (1980) sees a dual role for parents in the career development process: as guides or resource persons for their own children and as advocates for increased opportunities in the area of career education for all children, with emphasis on the impact that parents can have at the community, state, and local levels. Stressing the importance of the parent as a provider of information and experiences conducive to the formation of proper school and work attitudes, McDaniels and Hummel (1984) list 13 steps that parents can take to assist in their children's career development. These include encouraging the development of such basic work attitudes as promptness, respect, and responsibility; stressing that the work children do in school is good, important, and related to the larger world of work; helping children understand that no one individual can be completely competent in all things; providing a climate conducive to study; serving as the connecting link between home and school; and encouraging participation in diverse experiences outside of school, including leisure activities and part-time jobs.

Then what is that which keeps most teachers ticking? Perhaps the most rewarding aspect of teaching is to see the “Aha” expression on the face of a child, “Oh, THAT’S why it happens, so THAT’S the way it works!!” … the look on a child's face when the penny drops and they have learned something new that they will use for the rest of their lives… and knowing that you are the one who made it happen. As H.G. Wells rightly said, “The teacher, whether mother, priest or schoolteacher, is the real maker of history”.

References:

McDaniels, C. and D. Hummel. "Parents and Career Education." JOURNAL OF CAREER EDUCATION 10(4) (June 1984): 225-233.

Miller, J. V. THE FAMILY-CAREER CONNECTION: A NEW FRAMEWORK FOR CAREER DEVELOPMENT. Information Series no. 288. Columbus: ERIC Clearinghouse on Adult, Career, and Vocational Education, The National Center for Research in Vocational Education, The Ohio State University, 1984. ED 246 307.

Otto, L. B. YOUTH & CAREERS: A GUIDE FOR PARENTS. Boys Town, NE: Boys Town Center, 1983.

Otto, L. B. and V. R. A. Call. "Parental Influence on Young People's Career Development." JOURNAL OF CAREER DEVELOPMENT 12(1) (September 1985): 65-69.

Schergens, B. L. THE PARENT'S ROLE IN CAREER DEVELOPMENT: IMPLICATIONS FOR VOCATIONAL EDUCATION RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT. Occasional Paper no. 60. Columbus: The National Center for Research in Vocational Education, The Ohio State University, 1980. ED 186 707.