Crafting A Teaching Philosophy Statement

Constructive alignment refers to an “outcomes-based approach to teaching in which the learning outcomes that students are intended to achieve are defined before teaching takes place. Teaching and assessment methods are then designed to best achieve those [intended] outcomes and to assess the standard at which they have been achieved” (Biggs, 2014, p. 5). 

In other words, intended learning outcomes state what students should know, be able to do, or value by the end of the learning experience, and ideally, these outcomes are clearly defined prior to the start of the learning experience. In constructive alignment, intended learning outcomes directly inform which learning materials are selected and how practice activities and assessments are designed so they directly support students in achieving the intended learning outcomes. 

Intended learning outcomes are most helpful when they are action-oriented (i.e., they begin with a verb that identifies the depth of learning expected), specific (i.e., they specify the learning to be demonstrated), and measurable (i.e., they link to the learning activities and assessments).  

Universal design for learning (UDL), a framework developed by the Center for Applied Special Technology, known as CAST, is intended to enhance teaching and learning for all people based on scientific insights into how people learn. “The guidelines offer a set of concrete suggestions that can be applied to any discipline or domain to ensure that all learners can access and participate in meaningful, challenging learning opportunities” (CAST, 2025). 

As per the UDL Guidelines, three principles can be incorporated into all aspects of education to improve accessibility and ensure the widest range of people can engage: 1) multiple means of engagement (i.e., engaging students in learning in multiple ways), 2) multiple means of representation (i.e., presenting information in multiple ways), and 3) multiple means of expression (i.e., letting students demonstrate learning in multiple ways).  

Even when applying the UDL guidelines and trying your best to ensure that all students can engage in a learning experience, some barriers to engagement may still be present. Academic accommodations help to circumvent those barriers and enable engagement by all.  

Equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) are key to fostering a safe, positive learning experience wherein all students can succeed and differences are valued. Some examples of EDI being incorporated into teaching are:  

• Including diverse ways of knowing, diverse content, and diverse examples in the curriculum 
• Working to create a learning environment where students feel comfortable sharing their thoughts and feelings 
• Respecting diversity in student identity, both within (i.e., intersectionality) and across students  
• Using inclusive language (e.g., using the gender pronouns that students identify with) 
• Addressing biases, stereotypes, and discrimination right away when they arise 
• Encouraging interactions amongst diverse students 

As an educator, there are various ways in which you might integrate technology into your teaching to create engaging, effective student learning experiences. Regardless of the format of the learning experience (i.e., in-person, blended, or online), one educational technology used by many educators due to the structure it affords is a web-based learning management system (e.g., D2L’s Brightspace). Learning management systems typically include the following features: communications (e.g., announcements, email), content (i.e., you can post course materials), discussion boards, quizzes, electronic dropboxes, and an automated gradebook where you can build a rubric and/or provide written feedback on students’ work along with their grades. 

In blended and online courses, Microsoft Teams or Zoom are often employed for synchronous learning experiences, each with several tools built in that allow for student engagement (e.g., chat, screen share, polling, a virtual whiteboard, and breakout rooms for small group discussions). Like a Learning management system, Teams also allows for things like file storage/sharing (with organization) and communications (e.g., posts).  

Some additional educational technologies you might choose to leverage in your teaching include Echo 360, H5P, Mentimeter, and Top Hat, to name a few.  

When choosing whether to use a technology in your teaching, do consider what the technology is being used for. Is it being used to substitute, augment, modify, or redefine (Hamilton, Rosenberg, & Akcaoglu, 2016)? 

• Substitution: You are replacing a traditional tool with a digital equivalent, with no significant functional change  
• Augmentation: You are enhancing an existing tool with added features or functionality through technology  
• Modification: You are changing the process or task significantly through technology, allowing for new approaches to learning  
• Redefinition: You are creating an entirely new learning experience that would not be possible without technology 

Moreover, when choosing a technology also consider compatibility with existing infrastructure in your teaching context, technical support (e.g., whether it is an institutionally supported tool), accessibility, equitable access, cost, and data privacy concerns.  

Active learning refers to a group of teaching strategies whereby students learn by completing activities that combine action and reflection. Bonwell and Eison (1991, as cited in Millis, 2012, p. 1) describe active learning as “involving students in doing things and thinking about what they are doing.” Ideally, active learning exercises provide students with an opportunity to practice the skills/abilities at the heart of the intended learning outcomes. 

When people hear the term active learning, most seem to think of exercises like Concept Mapping, Think-Pair-Share, Gallery Walk, Jigsaw, Forced Debate, Muddiest Point, and One-Minute Paper (you can learn about these and 295 other active learning exercises in Yee’s Interactive Techniques for F2F Classes). Griffith University (Queensland, Australia) has a fantastic searchable database of active learning exercises, as well. Their Active Learning Design Tool allows you to filter by class size, activity group size, preparation time, duration, learning space, year level, phase of session, learning outcome, learning focus, and assessment strategy type (i.e., formative or summative).   

Some larger subsets of active learning that you may hear referenced as specific teaching methodologies include: Case-Based Learning, Inquiry-Based Learning, and Problem-Based Learning. 

• Case-Based Learning (CBL): Case-Based Learning is a teaching methodology wherein students learn by analyzing real-world scenarios (or scenarios that resemble the real world) presented as “cases,” often focusing on applying knowledge to solve complex problems within a specific context. This methodology emphasises critical thinking and collaborative discussion in reaching conclusions. 

• Inquiry-Based Learning (IBL): Inquiry-Based Learning is a teaching methodology wherein students actively explore a topic by asking their own questions, conducting research, and constructing knowledge through investigation, prioritizing the process of discovery and developing inquiry skills over finding a single definitive answer. Most Inquiry-based learning models have instructors guide students through the following 5 steps: orientation, conceptualization, investigation, conclusion, and discussion (Pedaste et al., 2015). 

• Problem-Based Learning (PBL): Problem-Based Learning is a teaching methodology wherein students are presented with a real-world problem and must work collaboratively to identify the key issues, gather relevant information, analyze data, and develop solutions, focusing on deep understanding and application of knowledge to solve practical problems. Thus, the focus is not solely on providing a solution, but examining the approach utilized, and how information was applied and analyzed. 

While there is some overlap between the IBL and PBL approaches, it is usually the case that “PBL focuses on questions to which answers already exist while IBL often requires primary research to determine possible answers – and PBL has a shorter timescale (one class to a few weeks), while IBL can be for a sustained period” (Spronken-Smith, Angelo, Matthews, O’Steen, & Robertson, 2007, p. 3).

Whereas active learning exercises provide students with an opportunity to practice the skills/abilities at the heart of the intended learning outcomes, assessments provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate their learning for evaluation – to showcase whether they have achieved the intended learning outcomes.  

Some assessment-related questions to ponder in reflecting on your own teaching methods are: 

• Do you align each assessment with one or more intended learning outcomes for the learning experience? 
• Do you ensure that your assessments are accessible and inclusive? 
• Are your assessments “authentic” (while there is no one agreed upon definition, it is generally understood that with such assessments, students are involved in doing, the assessments are realistic/they simulate testing in the workplace or in civic life, and they assess students’ abilities to use knowledge and skills to negotiate a complex task)? 
• Do you employ assessments that are due in one stage, or process-based assessments where various pieces are due at different points?  
• What assessment types do you typically use (e.g., group projects, multiple choice and short answer exams)?  
• Do you weight your assessments in a manner that matches the amount of time and effort they require of students?  
• Do you permit students to use generative artificial intelligence in completing all, or part of, their assessments? 
• Do you use the practice of ungrading (ungrading as a term can be a bit misleading, as the ungrading movement includes a range of alternative grading strategies, not necessarily foregoing grades altogether)? 
• Do you use rubrics, and if so, are they analytic (i.e., they have two dimensions, criteria and achievement / performance levels), holistic (i.e., they consider all of the criteria at once when assigning a level), or single-point (i.e., they have a single criterion with two levels: achieved and not achieved)?  
• Do you provide timely feedback on student work? 
• Is the feedback that you offer on student work balanced, noting what was done well as well as recommendations for improvement?  

You may find it helpful to regularly reflect in writing on the different teaching methods you employ, noting the particulars of what you tried, how it appeared to be received by students, and how well you felt it worked in terms of students achieving the intended learning outcomes you set out to teach them. If the method did not execute as well as planned, you may also find it helpful to also document why you feel that may have been the case and what you might do differently in the future. While reflection may be accomplished in many ways, the important thing is that you choose an approach that works well for you. Here, we will provide an overview of one approach that is frequently used by educators: the What? So What? Now What? model. 

The What? So What? Now What? model, developed by Driscoll (1994) based on Borton’s (1970) work, encourages you to first describe the experience (What?), analyze its meaning (So What?), and finally create an action plan for improvement (Now What?). 

In the “What?” stage, you describe the experience, focusing on the facts and your emotions. In the “So What?” stage, you analyze the experience’s significance, reflecting on how it connects to your existing knowledge and what insights can be drawn. Finally, in the “Now What?” stage, you plan for the future, setting actionable goals and identifying steps to improve based on the reflections from the previous stages. 

Student feedback on a learning experience may be collected midway through the experience (that is, as formative feedback), or at the end of the experience (that is, as summative feedback), or both. For courses, it is recommended that you collect both formative and summative feedback and that the feedback be collected anonymously.  

An anonymous formative feedback measure may include specific questions, or broad questions. For example, you may ask “What has been your least favorite lesson thus far, and why?”, or you may choose to administer a broader exercise like Stop-Start-Continue where students are asked to comment on what they think you should stop, start, and continue doing in your teaching. Formative feedback is valuable in that it provides you with insight as to what you should do to improve the course, and your teaching, for the current cohort of students. Once formative feedback has been collected, it is important that you act on it or address it in some way so that students know that you are in fact listening to their concerns and being attentive to their needs. 

If you a Teaching Assistant as opposed to a course instructor, do get permission from the course instructor before implementing any formative feedback measures. 

When a course comes to an end, typically an institutionally-mandated course evaluation or student course experience survey is implemented by the home department. This instrument usually includes questions about the overall quality of the learning experience. Course instructors may also independently (as a separate evaluation) ask for anonymous feedback about particular elements of the course experience. For example, they might ask: “If you could make one recommendation to improve the course, what would it be, and why?”. The questions would provide the instructor with information that they could use to improve the course for future offerings.  

If you are a Teaching Assistant as opposed to a course instructor, you must get permission from the instructor before implementing any summative feedback measures. 

It is a valuable exercise for educators to get peer feedback on their teaching from time to time. To that end, you may wish to invite a peer into your classroom so they can observe and give you feedback on your teaching and their experience of being one of your students. Having a conversation in advance as to what you would like the observer to attend to can help to reduce ambiguity and make for a more valuable observation. Most often, instructors will have a few specific issues they’d like feedback on, as well as general feedback regarding what seems to be working well and what some recommendations might be for improvement. In debriefing the experience with your peer observer, don’t forget to inquire whether there is anything that they learned from the observation that will have an impact on how they will approach their own teaching (i.e., don’t forget to ask about your impact on them as a colleague!).  

Institutions typically establish various awards – at the Teaching Assistant and instructor levels – to promote and reward teaching excellence. If you are a nominee or recipient of one of those awards, then that, too, can be cited as evidence of your teaching and learning impact in your teaching philosophy statement.