Teaching Philosophy
Immigrant and Refugee Communities Organization (IRCO), Portland, OR
Working with students of various age groups and diverse backgrounds and studying in various interdisciplinary fields, I gained experience and knowledge in different teaching methods. I design lessons with keeping all students in mind. I can address the needs of a variety of different types of learners.
I highly value experiential learning. The best way to learn about people and places is to go out in the field and let your boots get muddy. Through working with indigenous peoples and children in various countries around the world and the United States, I realized that I could not find myself solely by reading books and accumulating degrees. When I was one with people, I understood what I read in books much better. I encourage all my students to be participants in their learning process. I also believe that visual learning help students to understand better and retain knowledge when theory, words, and concepts are associated with images, such as maps, graphs, film, and pictures.