My Teaching Self: Me, with Slightly Less Profanity

The distinction between a "teaching self" and a plain old "self self" never really occurred to me. Having spent years in leadership positions throughout elementary, middle, and high school, being "in charge" of a group of learners felt natural; I never took the time to analyze how I transitioned from a standard junior in high school to Drum Major in the blink of an eye every weekday afternoon. What changed, what stayed the same, how were my personal relationships different when I was just Emma versus when I was Drum Major Emma Briscoe?

The notion of "teaching self" never became relevant to me until I started instructing at the college level. While I am older for a graduate student, many of my students aren't that far behind me in age. And I don't have a band director behind me giving unruly students the stink eye when they step out of line. I have to be both the source of wisdom AND the stink eye. And, unlike high school marching band, apparently it's frowned upon to dole out physical punishments (sit ups and push ups) to college students. Who knew?

Seriously though, I started to notice how uncomfortable I was at the front of the classroom, practically crouched behind my podium, during my first class, English 1106. And it wasn't even the day that I accidentally wore a GWAR shirt with a cigarette hole in it, ripped acid wash jeans, and combat boots. Though that day still resonates in the "NEVER, EVER AGAIN" compartment of my brain. I started to realize that there had to be some kind of distinction.

So I overcompensated. I wore vests. VESTS. I cracked down on attendance, grammar, and vocal participation. I became annoyingly attentive to detail and lapsed into almost condescending, patronizing conventional lectures where I was the guru and my students were my faithful followers. And it wasn't working.

The following approaches worked for me and got me away from vests and being the Miss Bitters of Virginia Tech's Graduate faculty. These approaches got me where I am today; still making mistakes, but owning them and using them to inform the version of myself that walks into the next class.

1)You don't have to be funny; the internet is funny.

Memes- use them. And if you can't find them, make them. Websites like Meme Generator are free to use and they reach students. Just make sure you're using the meme correctly! These work across disciplines. Just don't overload slides with memes or overuse them. I like to randomly put zingers into my lecture slides to catch attention, but they also give students something memorable to attach a certain concept or lesson to.

Videos- use these when appropriate. Don't just do a Youtube search on the subject matter you're teaching for a given day and assume that the video will work. And always find a way to push the students to engage with a video- tell them what they're looking for, encourage them to take notes, or have questions listed on the board while they watch the video.

Give yourself time to think deeply about certain lessons and the kinds of video content you can use. I used this video to teach my students how to write an effective personal narrative, how to transition fluidly between topics, and how to find a writing voice. I recently used Jim Gaffigan clips ("Camping" and "Holiday Traditions") to teach students how to connect two seemingly unrelated or distantly related topics and had them thoroughly analyze via group discussion how Gaffigan manages to move through such vastly different topics in such a short time. We talked about our favorite comedians, what makes them our favorite comedians, and how that ties into writing.

Just make sure to watch the videos all the way through and avoid anything that could offend or insult a student. Keep religion, culture, gender identity, sexual orientation, and class in mind when selecting video content. The last thing you want to do is alienate anyone (or make yourself look insensitive and unapproachable).


Jokes, Sarcasm, and Dry Humor- I am a twisted, twisted individual. I am able to see humor in just about everything. I was able to crack jokes at my own mother's funeral, something she would no doubt be proud of. Subsequently, I am able to crack jokes in almost every class I teach. Do not assume that dry humor and sarcasm is over the head of all of your students. Some, maybe only the extremely bright ones, will pick up on it. Don't allow sarcasm to confuse students during a lecture, but if you see an opportunity to crack an appropriate, subject-related joke, go for it. The worst thing you can do is crash and burn and look like a complete and total idiot in front of your students and then wind up curling up in the shower with all your clothes on and crying yourself to sleep that night.

It won't be that bad. Don't be afraid to try to be funny. Michael Cera made an entire career out of trying to be funny and failing. That could be you.

2)Explain grading and pedagogical practices to students. Allow them to weigh in on it.

Students won't spend group activities rolling their eyes and checking their newfangled cell phones if you explain to them why you're using the approach you're using. Well, some still will. But pulling back the veils of mystery that grey some learning processes motivates students to try harder and work harder toward the goal you made them aware of. Group work, individual work, out of class assignments- each of these should have an obvious purpose that is bolstered by your explanation of what makes the given work necessary or effective.

At the end of an activity or assignment, ask the students if they found it effective in specific terms. If they answer no, get specific feedback on why they found it lacking and what would make it better. Allow them a few minutes to write down their responses or create a poll on Scholar. Student feedback can be invaluable information.

Also, be sure to explain your grading process to students. For example, I use rubrics when I grade freshman composition papers. The rubrics have very specific expectations and they are loaded with detailed descriptions of what the student needs to demonstrate in order to successfully communicate an idea via academic essay. I go over the rubrics on Peer Review day and explain why each category lists the criteria it lists and why those criteria (for the most part) delineate successful writing. They are also posted on the class Scholar page and accessible during the drafting phase of each major assignment.

3)Ask students for feedback before the end of the semester and actually use that feedback. Demonstrate to them how their feedback affected your approach to teaching.

Roughly halfway through the semester, I have my students do a freewrite exercise in which they list the topics they are confident about, topics they need more work on (or were communicated in a confusing way), and what they liked and disliked about the class in terms of instruction. I then make diagrams of their answers and incorporate those diagrams into a quick discussion at the beginning of the next class. Feedback often indicates that students want more video content, would like to listen to music during writing exercises, and enjoy doing group work. I then tailor the remaining lectures as best I can to suit their desires. Letting students know that you care about what they want out of class makes them eager to be there. When you encounter something that you added or changed because of their feedback, vocalize it; say, "Hey guys, I know you enjoy Youtube videos, so I found this one on bad presentation skills."

4)Talk to them like adults.

This shouldn't need much explanation. I do have a bad habit of referring to my students as "my kids," but I make sure not to do it to their faces. Make a conscious effort to not patronize or condescend your students. Don't humiliate them because your teachers always humiliated you. They aren't kids, they're adults. They may not realize it yet, but they are. And speaking to them like children will only ensure a hostile environment wherein you are the babysitter and they are your charges.

5)Be malleable.

Be flexible and don't whine about having to be flexible. Understand that plans won't always go your way; group projects will fall apart, computer malfunctions will happen, participation will wane, attendance will ebb and flow. Be willing to structure lessons in different ways and be obliged to help students who are struggling. Above all of this, maintain your cool while being malleable. Allow your circumstances to shape your approach, not beat it to death. Don't sweat change; embrace it.

6)Be yourself, own yourself.

My favorite show is Downton Abbey. My dog, Mr. Bates, is named after the best character on that show. I love Medieval Literature. I hate driving in the snow. I'm a gym enthusiast who smokes half a pack a day. I am sometimes insecure about my ability to write. And guess what....my students know all of that. Because I am myself in class. Everyday is Truth Day (to a certain degree).

Correction: I am myself, I just try to curse less.

I don't have a ton of confidence. People think I do because I'm loud and I have a sometimes zany approach to fashion and hair, but I question myself constantly. My students do not know this. I appear as confident as possible; the last thing a room of students needs is some unsure, timid, quivering, self-loathing Professor Quirrell-esque graduate student haphazardly tripping through a lesson, baring their shattered sense of self all along the way. Students feed off of your confidence and experience positive growth, but they can also feed off your weaknesses and backslide.

Sarah E. Deel admits this in Finding My Teaching Voice when she admits that she is "uncool." She owns being uncool and makes it part of her teaching self.

If I had to describe my teaching self with a random list of adjectives, it would go something like: loud, energetic, (occasionally) profane, funny, approachable, and nerdy. The nerdiness can be off putting, but because I own it and proudly make it part of who I am, I am ultimately more approachable.

7)Make lectures personal
It is possible to make lectures personal without making them weird.

For example, I use student names in example sentences when teaching various grammar lessons. When students see their names on the lecture slides, they pay closer attention and the likelihood that they are a) paying attention and b) going to remember the lesson increases.

I also use an unorthodox method of taking attendance; rather than having students answer "present" or "here," I pose a question and their answer indicates their presence. I'll ask them who their celebrity crush is, what their favorite dessert is, where they'd rather be, who their most hated celebrity is, and the list goes on. I make sure to answer the question myself at the end; this tricks my human students into thinking that I, too, am human.

8)Let students know it's okay to be anxious or lack confidence

This is another point at which you can employ the freewrite approach. Ensure students that it is normal to feel anxious about learning a new subject (or a subject they dislike or have performed poorly in in the past) and have them jot down their fears/insecurities/doubts at the beginning of the semester. At the end, give them this paper back and have them write down what they conquered as well as what areas still need attention (encourage them to be specific). Making the subject approachable is equally as important as constructing an approachable teaching self.

9)See students as individuals

Avoid looking at your roster as a list of student numbers or a list of papers to grade. Instead, realize that each student comes from a unique cultural, political, spiritual, etc... background and that background shapes who they are in the classroom.

Take the time to learn your student's names. If my undergraduate Chemistry professor can do it in a class of almost 500 students, you can do it.

A great way of learning student names- make your first assignment a five to seven slide Power Point that has their name and a clear picture of their face. They can include slides that detail their hobbies, their family, their friends, their favorite books/movies/video games/instruments, their pets, etc...This assignment makes them aware that you want to know who they are as individuals and it also gives you extra details to associate with the name and face before you. Just make sure to emphasize that pictures must be appropriate (no gym shots, no beach vacation pictures, no illegal stuff).

You can be both respected at the library and praised effusively at the bar, but obsessing over your teaching self in those terms will only lead you down a road of constant and obsessive self revision. Be the teacher that both librarians and vagrant barflies can appreciate; be you.