Statements on Teaching, Scholarship, Service

For promotion and tenure, and for most awards, you are asked to write some sort of a statement about your teaching. Although there is considerable overlap, the requirements do vary from award to award (TTA, FACET, Distinguished Teaching) and for the promotion dossier. 

We have a number of resources to help you, but there is no substitute for having others read your draft statement! It is particularly helpful if your reader has experience in reviewing applications/dossiers. 

One important distinction--a teaching philosophy is a relatively brief (1-2 page) statement talking about your goals and beliefs for teaching in relatively abstract terms, often with reference to educational theorists. These are often requested with job applications. These philosophy statements are NOT what we use at IUSB for awards and promotions! When we say "teaching statement" we generally mean a 4-10 page statement that talks about your teaching beyond the philosophy--we want to know how you implement that philosophy in your classrooms and how it works. We want to know about other teaching activities such as community education and Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. And we want short concrete examples so that we have a flavor of what it is like to be taught by you. Finally, these statements are usually fairly personal, with the use of "I" and contractions. Sharing your passion for teaching is expected. 

Resources:

Here are a number of statements to give you an idea of how they can vary. These are not necessarily the best statements--they are a convenience sample, and they may not be from the person's area of excellence. (That is why so many are "Mettetal.")