Writing Teaching Statements

Components of a Strong Teaching Statement

• Includes a description of your teaching goals: with what content, skills, or values should students leave your course?
• Provides concrete examples of specific course topics, assignments, assessments, and teaching methods that demonstrate how you have applied your teaching philosophy.
• Is descriptive, vivid, and personal in describing your teaching, so your readers can picture you teaching their students.
• Describes the ways in which you create an accessible and inclusive learning environment.
• Demonstrates an understanding of student learning and describes how your teaching facilitates student learning.
• Tells how you provide all students an equal opportunity to learn.
• Highlights your strengths as a teacher, emphasizing what you do best.
• Describes your use of specific teaching strategies – for example:
  • Using active learning
  • Facilitating discussions
  • Fostering community and belonging
  • Providing transparency in assessment
  • Being flexible to your students’ needs
• Discusses lessons learned, challenges, and innovations you’ve made.
• Includes your goals for improving your teaching.

Common Pitfalls in Writing Teaching Statements

• Discusses your general philosophy about teaching but does not reflect your experiences with applying that philosophy or include examples from your teaching.
• References a philosophy or belief but never describes it outright.
• Expressing a belief in an approach to teaching without establishing how that approach has been integrated into your teaching.
• Simply lists teaching techniques or experiences but does not describe how these techniques or experiences have contributed to your beliefs about what constitutes effective teaching.
• Dwells too much on negative experiences or circumstances.
• Provides a detailed summary of your student evaluations or feedback from colleagues and mentors.
• Uses too much jargon.
• Tacks on a “diversity paragraph” at the end of the statement rather than weaving considerations of inclusivity throughout your narrative.

Structure of a Teaching Statement

The teaching statement often follow the five-paragraph essay format: an introductory paragraph, several body paragraphs, and a concluding paragraph.

• The introductory paragraph describes the important knowledge and skills you want students to develop. The opening also provides an overview of the strategies and techniques you use to help student achieve these goals.
• Each subsequent body paragraph contributes evidence of your teaching practices.
• The final paragraph, rather than a recapitulation of the entire document, is a reflection on your progression as a teacher:
  • What your successes have been
  • What you are working on
  • What courses you would like to teach
  • What methods would you like to explore

Teaching Statements and Philosophies

Basic Stylistic Conventions and Guidelines

• Keep it brief: 1-2 single spaced pages for hiring applications and 3-5 pages for promotion or tenure review.
• Use narrative style (not bullet points or outline).
• Use first-person pronouns and present tense.
• Do not simply repeat what is in your CV.
• Use a professional but conversational tone.
• Use formatting that matches the rest of your application documents.
• Make sure your statement is well written and proofread, with no typos or errors.
• Use specific words from the job ad if you are writing a statement for a specific position.

Stylistic Don’ts:

• Use unnecessary adjectives and adverbs.
• Use exclamation points or unconventional punctuation.
• Use statements of belief (e.g., I think, I hope, I believe, In my opinion, It seems to me).
• Use subjunctive tense (e.g., I should, I could, I would).
• Use cliches about teaching and learning
  • I believe every student should have the opportunity…
  • No one should graduate without …
  • My aim in the classroom is to ensure that students are engaged and learning…
• Use luck (or privilege or divine intervention) to explain your success.
  • I’ve been fortunate
  • I’ve been blessed
  • I’ve been lucky enough to
  • I’ve had the good fortune

Sources

Washington University in St. Louis Center for Teaching and Learning
Writing a Teaching Philosophy Statement

Indiana University/Bloomington Center for Innovative Teaching and Learning
Teaching Statements and Philosophies

University of Notre Dame Learning
Writing a Teaching Statement

Princeton University McGraw Center for Teaching & Learning
Writing Teaching Statements and Philosophies

Vanderbilt University Center for Teaching
Teaching Statements

Northwestern University PhD and Postdoc Success
Teaching Statement

Yale University Poorvu Center for Teaching and Learning
Teaching Statements

University of Toronto Centre for Teaching Support & Innovation
Developing a Statement of Teaching Philosophy

Cornell University Graduate School
Teaching Philosophy

University of Texas/Austin Center for Teaching and Learning
Crafting a Teaching Statement

Massachusetts Institute of Technology EECS Communication Lab
Teaching Statement

Auburn University Biggio Center
Teaching Statement Guide

Additional Resources

University of Michigan Center for Research on Learning and Teaching Occasional Papers
Writing a Statement of Teaching Philosophy for the Academic Job Search

University of Minnesota Center for Educational Innovation
Writing Your Teaching Philosophy: Rubrics and Samples

University of Michigan
Teaching Philosophy: Samples, Resources, and Quick Guide

University of California/Berkeley Career Engagement
Teaching Portfolio