Higher Education Philosophy Statement
Philosophy Background
As a higher education faculty member, I believe the purpose of the education I offer my students to be focused, passionate, and experienced. As a practicing certified flight paramedic with years of experience in both the public and private sector, I engage my students with informative, action packed, and content rich material in every class section. Whether it be via skits, war stories, special guest, technology, etc., my role as an educator is to make my students yearn for the material, be able to understand the material, and then put their understanding into practice – translating that learned knowledge into excellent patient centered care.
A Focused Mindset
Teaching in health sciences requires a focused mindset. This means students receive a personalized, up close education that places them in the “hot” seat. In an environment where the weak don’t thrive or survive, I employ high impact practices and intense simulations to not only engage my students but create a focused learning environment. I believe students learn best in this environment as it prepares them for the careers to which they are training for. My students will be able to stand in the gap at the completion of the course and be ready for “battle.”
Passionate Mentoring
One of the most important components of teaching in the health science related fields is to transfer your passion for the material to your students. My passion for prehospital emergency medicine shines through in the way I engage my students both professionally and personally. Every classroom session is an opportunity for me to share my passion with my students so that they too become passionate about caring for others. I stimulate passion by having students participate in live job shadows in high stakes cases. I enter the classroom each day with the highest expectations of my students and expect them to perform at their very best – an expectation that their patients will also have of them. I aim to share an open mind, equal opportunity, and positive attitude for my students. When students underperform, I believe in active counseling, and not passive grading to address the problem.
Experienced Education
I believe the health science classroom in the higher education realm should be safe, engaging, and a place for my students to obtain new life philosophies, skills, and tenets of service. I use my experience as prehospital emergency medicine practitioner to ensure my students receive up to date, scientifically proven, and consistently reliable medical education. Using years of experience in the education field, I employ the Socrative method during lecture instruction and the levels of Bloom’s taxonomy to ensure my students leave the classroom with the knowledge to identify, assess, and properly treat their patients and not just pass a test.
Classroom Values
Students learn best when they are in a safe environment free from nonconstructive scorn. My students will be treated equally and with mutual respect. My students will learn to respect one another, course faculty, and most importantly their patients. I will seek to invest recruitment efforts in diversification of my student body and ensure that all students are given an opportunity to attend.
Simple – Yet Powerful
Most importantly, my classroom will be a place where students can engage their mind, invest in their futures, and serve their communities. Together we’ll bridge yesterday’s transports with today’s theory, research, and processes providing the best outcomes for our patients tomorrow.