Tomekia M. Simeon Teaching Philosophy Statement My strongest quality as a computational researcher and teacher is my passion for chemistry, which I believe is contagious in my teaching. My primary goal as a teacher is to use this enthusiasm to prepare students to be informed citizens with the ability to think critically and communicate effectively in a world fueled by innovations in science and technology. And it is my responsibility to challenge and support my students, by having a two-fold approach to teaching (1) to ensure students are learning chemical concepts and (2) to assist in developing their self-efficacy and confidence in cultivating a chemical problem-solving mindset that is beneficial to all disciplines. From my experiences the key elements for teaching success are: (1) Support the development of knowledge and skills so that students can think critically and communicate effectively, (2) promote active …show more content…
Students learn chemistry best when they can understand how principles, theorems and concepts can be applied to real life situations. With this in mind, they can develop an intellectual toolbox of ideas – so, that when a problem is presented they will think about how to solve the problem versus learning (or memorizing) how to solve each particular problem. (2) Promote active learning to ensure students are learning chemical concepts. I believe that a good teacher must invest time in preparing a clear and precise lecture. I develop my lectures around telling a story, with the goal of capturing their attention and sustaining their interest during the lecture. When prepping a lecture, I carefully construct examples that discuss current events and present the students with concrete, and often time’s visual examples (ranging from current publications, newspaper articles, and multi-media) related to real-world