Teaching Competencies

Reflection on Teaching

Before my doctoral degree, the only teaching experience I had was substitute teaching in high school. While I had been teaching and preaching the word of God in churches, I did not have any prior professional teaching experience. Moreover, my confidence level for teaching master's students was relatively low. I was concerned about the right way of giving feedback and grading. However, the degree has helped develop my teaching, leadership, knowledge, and skills competency. Teaching counseling students at the master's level has helped raise my comfort level and ignited a desire to teach after graduation. In addition, the encouragement, feedback, and validation that I have received from master's level students have impacted me positively.

What has been especially meaningful and essential to me personally and professionally has been the comments from faculty. My teaching competencies were impacted by such an incredible positive comment from faculty. In addition, comments in the student's evaluation have been phenomenal. Students responded positively to my interactive teaching style and reported feeling comfortable and motivated to learn. The opportunity to teach students online strengthened my teaching skills and raised my confidence.
 

My goal as a teacher is to help my students learn through interaction while providing a learning environment that motivates students to learn. To accomplish this goal, I plan to enhance this strength to become a more competent teacher. In addition, I aim to improve my teaching skills through feedback from students.

One area of challenge and a growth opportunity for teaching competency is navigating through remediation procedures. This is new to me. So, to meet this goal, I look forward to mentoring from my professors to learn these skills and strategies. Finally, I plan to develop teaching competency excellence by participating in conferences provided through organizations such as ACES and SACES.  

Throughout my degree program, my professors have demonstrated the example of Jesus Christ in the way they invest in students. The example that Jesus set before us is making disciples, investing in people, and equipping them to impact the world. This model is dear to my heart: to invest my time and knowledge with master's students and train them to be all God has called them to be. Therefore, utilizing various methods, I plan to invest in their lives in the same way my professors have invested in me.  I am passionate and very creative in my teaching methods, and by modeling such, I can help my students develop their own competencies to become competent counselors. I consider teaching as a call of God upon my life as the scripture says in James 3:1 that "Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly."  For me, His is a great responsibility, so I take this call seriously. Therefore, I am intentional in my teaching and my interaction with my students.