Julie Doxsee
Educator Statement
Professors I know and admire make an active effort to form relationships with individual learners, moving student work from where it is to where it could be, elucidating connections that a student may not see. This ability to unearth potential in a student’s work comes from experience, from a knack for mentorship, and from love for the art of teaching. I believe that a good educator has the power to draw out a student’s potential for academic success, and that encouraging a student to cultivate a "toolbox" is a way to turn that seed of potential into something miraculous. For the benefit of the classroom community, the additional capacity to adapt and re-calibrate pedagogical/andragogical methods according to the complexion of the class, the ongoing conversation of the course, and the collective needs of the group is crucial to creating an equitable, inclusive environment.
Learners become social citizens as they become critical thinkers and writers; my promotion of this idea extends beyond the classroom into the real world where problems occupy the minds of the public. I emphasize that to critically examine social issues is to begin to devise realistic solutions through building dialogue, understanding divergent perspectives, respecting social differences, and finding common bonds. Writing becomes the mode through which to organize, develop, and form conclusions for newly-exposed avenues of thought.
My enthusiasm for teaching writing comes alive in the classroom; I believe my attention to individual students and to the community as a whole comes from my ability to carefully listen and respond in ways that are thought-provoking, inspirational, and respectful. Likewise, in my class, students learn to carefully listen and respond meaningfully—with insightful interpretations, suggestions, and ideas—to me and to their peers. One of the great delights of teaching is that I find myself in the position of learning more from my students than I could possibly teach; one of the many aspects of my career that I find indelibly rewarding.