Learning
I believe learning is an immensely personal thing. It may be facilitated, encouraged, and in some limited ways assessed, but one's own "sense making" is dependent upon one's own personal goals, background experiences, and current life circumstances even more than it is upon a course's stated learning outcomes. However, many learners do not see learning this way and need assistance before they can recognize and take personal responsibility for their learning. At the same time, joining together with others in an intentional, formalized pursuit of learning can augment one's own learning potential. I believe this is due in part to the effect of each member of a cohort simultaneously observing and modeling actions associated with learning (e.g., Bandura's, 1986, Social Learning/Cognitive Theory), and I believe that it is in dialogue with other people that we are better able to make sense of our experiences (e.g., Constructivism/Social Constructivism after Bruner, 1986, 1996; Vygotsky, 1978). While many metaphors are helpful to explain different aspects of learning, I tend to view learning as the formation of new mental "connections," new ways of seeing and as successful participation in a community of practice (Wilson, 1996).

Teaching
For me, then, teaching is a facilitative art. While there are certainly research-based principles to be applied in teaching, I find that deciding which principles to use and how they should applied along with what to teach is, for me, a rather emergent process. I try to stay grounded in what students will have to do in their lives as a result of the learning experiences they have (hopefully) had with me. I aspire to guide, encourage, correct, and perhaps even inspire the students entrusted to me with respect for their own human dignity. As a musician who was trained to be a conductor, I see the teaching role as a well-timed, evocative upbeat which brings forth the inevitable well-executed tone on the downbeat. However, this is only possible when the musicians have engaged as a cohesive unit through a willing suspension of disbelief in the authority of the conductor/teacher.

Overarching Goals
Independent of any particular curricular goals associated with the knowledge domain of a particular course, I try to cultivate in my students:

• Personal responsibility
• Pursuit of excellence
• Personal empowerment
• A willingness to ask questions
• A valuing of learning with and from others

As an undergraduate, one of my best professors noted, "This isn't a course in psychology of music learning. It's a course in Madsen." I have found this statement to be a touchstone in my own teaching. That is, I try to be as a human being what I want to see in my students, independent of the course's subject matter.

Enacting Philosophy
I strive to establish an environment in which students can have experiences that will most likely result in learning. That is, I require and extrinsically reward meaningful, engaging dialogue between and among students and myself. These interactions draw upon various information sources – many of which I require the students to search for – and typically precede one or more concrete experiences in which students apply knowledge and skills in a real world (or near real world) setting before reflecting upon these experiences.

Faculty Development
Since much of my work has involved facilitating the learning of other faculty, my teaching philosophy would be incomplete without a word about faculty development. I believe the single most powerful thing one can do to help other faculty develop professionally is to cultivate faculty opportunities for peer modeling and personal reflection. However, such opportunities may be maximized by breeching traditional disciplinary "silos" within an institution and by using social media professionally to connect with faculty outside of one's geographical boundaries. Ideally, goals of individual faculty should be aligned with strategic institutional initiatives where ever possible to effect a generative institutional culture that fosters a continual re-examination of the nature of teaching and learning. (For more thoughts, see Thompson, 2009, July 22 and Thompson, 2009, August 3.)

References

Bandura, Albert. (1986) Social foundations of thought and action: A social cognitive theory. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

Bruner, J. (1986). Actual minds, possible worlds. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Bruner, J. (1996). The culture of education. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Thompson, K. (Producer/Host). (2009, July 22). Five things I’ve learned about faculty development [Episode 10]. Of Courses Online. Podcast retrieved [date here] from http://ofcoursesonline.com/wp-content/uploads/010_five_things_faculty_development.mp3

Thompson, K. (Producer/Host). (2009, August 3). Six MORE things I’ve learned about faculty development [Episode 12]. Of Courses Online. Podcast retrieved [date here] from http://ofcoursesonline.com/wp-content/uploads/010_five_things_faculty_development.mp3

Vygotsky, L. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Wilson, B. (1996). Introduction: What is a constructivist learning environment? In B. Wilson (Ed.), Constructivist learning environments:Case studies in instructional design. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Educational Technology Publications.