Margaret M. Clements, Ph.D.
Director and President
Center for Knowledge Diffusion, Bloomington, IN 47401
MARGARET M. CLEMENTS
Philosophy In the words of legendary pianist, Menahem Pressler: “Inspiration is the one thing that cannot be ordered: it must comprise us” (2005). For me, both learning and teaching are the primary avenues to inspiration. That is, learning and teaching enable us to become better than we think we have the potential to be. I am personally driven by a strong belief that by improving opportunities for education, we have the possibility to transform human existence. Moreover, I find myself increasingly fascinated by the multiple ways in which other people add meaning to our lives. Teachers, especially, are in a privileged position to stimulate meaning in peoples’ lives by their intense involvement with the shaping of minds. As an educator, I think I am most effective at transforming my students’ possibilities when I come to know their individual points of view, listen closely to their aspirations and expand their concepts of their own possibilities. Then I focus all my effort on helping them to achieve—even exceed—their goals.
I know that I help my students move to higher levels of achievement primarily through honesty and a commitment to excellence, combined with the necessary technical roadmaps (research, writing and critical thinking skills development through practice and constructive feedback). I try to inspire them to take possession of their own lives by intensively preparing them for a lifelong journey of self development. I teach my students that success is crafted from incremental accomplishments—from seemingly minor improvements—that ultimately transform our own lives, change institutions and impact the lives of others. I want my students to know that success is an internal state of mind that is not externally conferred. Not only is my practice of teaching informed by my theory and philosophy, but it is profoundly influenced by my background and who I have become. Growing up the eldest daughter in a family of seven children, my parents raised us on a public school teacher’s salary. I attended four beleaguered inner city schools that subsequently have been shut down. As a result of this experience, I developed multifaceted and complex views of education, access, multiculturalism and social responsibility at an early age. Now in his fifty-first year of teaching history in an inner city public school high school district, my father reflected on his career and confided that his greatest accomplishment has been to be able to honestly say that he loves all of his students. Given the disadvantaged upbringing of many of these adolescents and the resulting challenges he faces in the classroom, it occurred to me that he had accomplished something quite monumental. In a very real sense, my father has spent his life working with students whose visualization of their own potential has been constrained by their circumstances. Throughout my life I have encountered many of his former students who achieved more than they thought possible because of his inspiration. From him, I learned that the essence of education lies in respect for the individual and the harnessing of his/her potential. Practice My university classroom. Too frequently, students find themselves confronted by projects they don’t know how to begin. Of course, many students also need guidance learning how to be more effective thinkers. The learning process is fraught with conflict from which anxiety and confusion can develop. For some students, the situation can appear hopeless. To prevent anxiety from escalating in my students, it is my practice to approach teaching from a technical perspective. I have found that giving concrete avenues to achieve goals, enables students to wield opportunities for enriched and even inspired understanding. My job as an educator is to give each of my students a sort of analytical toolbox—or frame of reference—that they take with them into their future roles as professionals. I accomplish this by meeting individually with students concerning their projects, by providing detailed feedback on their assignments, by challenging them, and by giving them multiple opportunities to demonstrate and perfect their knowledge and understanding. References Bull, B.L., Fruehling, R.T., Chattergy, V. (1992). The ethics of multicultural and bilingual education. New York: Teachers College Press. Habermas, J. (1984). The theory of communicative action. Boston: Beacon Press. Pressler, M. (2005, October 23). Interview with Menahem Pressler. Profiles. WFIU: Bloomington, IN. Rawls, J. (1971). A theory of justice. Cambridge Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. |