loneliness

loneliness
“The thing to do, when you don't know, is not to bluff and not to freeze, but to learn.” Donella H. Meadows

Monday, January 31, 2011

What I missed

I will probably never fully understand the forces that pushed me away in the first place. But I know very well why I wanted to return. It was because I missed my colleagues, the exciting diversity of my students, and the profound, insistent and real sense of mission that permeates everything we do at Seattle University. It was because I missed our noisy and argumentative, but eventually productive faculty meetings. And it was also because I missed programs--new, exiting, and only dreamed of--and the wonderful staff that makes them happen. I missed the Chapel and the reflecting pool I could see from my window at Pigott. Also the rain, the wind, the gorgeous blue skies framed by snow-capped mountains framed by the cold white-capped sea. And playful zig-zagging white sails on the lakes.

A synergy of values

Each of the values that support Seattle University’s mission is important by itself in guiding what we do, and how we do it. But they are also important as a group. Because we are seen to care, excellence in teaching and research has a much stronger impact than if we were perceived not to care. Because we stress justice and strong ethical principles, our students are more likely to accept the tough challenges of training to become future leaders. And together—illuminated by faith and grounded in a diverse community—they bring life and energy to the University. 

What's great about being a teacher

We must prepare those who decide to major in accounting not simply to pass the CPA exam, and not even just to get that first job. They must be ready for a world fraught with temptations to manipulate financial disclosures. A world in desperate need of professionals with vision, competence, character, and courage to make a difference. I remember how proud I was when a student I once had in intermediate accounting, came back as a professional in a Big 4 firm to give a talk to our students. I wasn’t proud just because she had a job with a prestigious firm. I was proud because she was so confident, articulate, happy with her chosen career, and her talk was so good! She is poised to become a leader of the accounting profession in the not too distant future. Moments like this are what makes it great to be a teacher.

Anything but dry

The topic I teach is a good test case for placing the University’s values in action. The common perception of accounting is that it is a rather dry subject, with much to memorize and many difficult exams to take, but if one can only graduate with a B or above, a well paying job should not be too hard to find. But even a high GPA student who maintains these beliefs after graduation would not be a success story according to Seattle University’s values.
It is our job to help the student decide whether accounting is indeed the best career for him or her. To assist in understanding a difficult passage in the textbook, or to discover why the outcome of a certain test was disappointing. To pose intriguing and challenging questions in class, and to smile, tell interesting and funny stories, and make it so that they will come and enjoy even the 8 AM class on a rainy Monday. If they know we care, it is amazing how much effort they will put into their assignments, and how much lighter their load will be.
But accounting is not dry. It can be gray, but only because in many areas setting accounting policy is anything but black and white. This is interesting gray, where fraud and manipulation thrive. Interesting also because investors must learn to see through the complex veil of accounting in order to make sound decisions. As teacher I must be cognizant of recent developments in the applied and academic worlds of accounting, so that I can bring what is new and puzzling with me to the classroom. Not next year when a new textbook comes out, but tomorrow when CNN will be spreading the news. Should we or should we not implement fair values in financial statements now? How did the “credit crunch” begin, and what can be done to lessen its impact? If I can bring my own insights to the classroom I will be a living example of someone who is excited about accounting. And so, some of my students may also catch the “bug”.

My approach to teaching

In order to be an effective teacher I must, first and foremost, have a group of motivated students in the classroom. I try to achieve this by making clear to all the importance of the topic I am teaching, by showing how exciting its applications can be and by demonstrating my enthusiasm about it. For example, when teaching financial accounting I encourage my students to visualize not just a collection of arcane principles and rules, but an information system that supports decision making and is a key factor in the efficiency of capital markets.


A key element of motivation is the degree to which the student feels challenged. I believe it is my responsibility to pose challenges that can only be addressed by diligent study and active participation throughout the course. I also believe it is my responsibility to help my students meet these challenges by providing clear explanations, by giving timely feedback on assignments, and by being available to provide support outside of class. Finally, I believe that to be effective I must make learning enjoyable. I strive to illustrate concepts with interesting examples, to share my own professional experiences, and to demonstrate how each lesson can be applied in a real setting. In addition. there should be something special about coming to class that no textbook can replace: live interaction, debate, questions and answers, funny incidents and wonderful moments of discovery.


In sum, I believe in explaining the big picture, in challenging my students and in making learning enjoyable. When preparing a new syllabus and every time I open the door of a classroom to teach, these are the issues I think about.

Sunday, January 30, 2011

Statement of teaching philosophy

What can we do?


This is perhaps the most fundamental issue that we all face when contemplating the wide open, inquiring eyes of a new student: What can we do to make it worthwhile for the student to come and listen to us for several hours each week over a period of 10-14 weeks? What can we do to make a difference? We can certainly provide useful information. We can explain how things are, have been, or might be under certain conditions. We can introduce techniques, tools, and different ways of thinking. If we do this in an engaging, clear, rigorous and up to date way we will be enhancing our students’ abilities to think critically and to effect change in the world.


But we can do more. We can provide information in a context in which we are or have been actors too, either in a professional or academic (research) capacity. In this fashion we become role models. Not necessarily to be imitated or followed in every or even any way, but as examples that help connect a classroom or textbook lesson to life, and imbue it with the colors of reality. One thing is to learn about the right formula to use when valuing a business. Another is to know someone who was there and did that, and hear “war” stories, funny stories, out of the textbook stories. Or someone who is actively engaged in finding the solution to still unsolved questions in the discipline. By offering students a collection of role models in many disciplines we will be helping them decide who they are, and who they want to be.


Teachers inform and perform while demonstrating real hopes, fears, doubts and most of all enthusiasm. It is enthusiasm that overcomes fear, helps resolve doubts, and validates hope. This means being truly ourselves in the classroom. Not a replica of some textbook’s author, nor strict guardian of arcane rules, but someone who truly enjoys the discipline of finance, or marketing, or law, or whatever it is that we teach.  Someone who is thrilled with the accomplishments, fascinated by the unsolved questions, and trusting in the relevance of the disciplines we teach. If we can accomplish this we will contribute immensely to our students finding the area or areas that they are enthusiastic about. We will also be helping them find a reason to want to engage with the world and transform it.


I believe that if as teachers and scholars we do all of the above, we will be making sure that students enjoy the time spent in class and derive maximum benefit from it. We will be contributing to their figuring out who they are or want to be, in which area of human endeavor they most want to act, and how to use the tools available. But two crucial elements are still missing. The first is the ability to choose the direction of change, set priorities, and persuade others to help. The second is the courage, energy, and strength of character to actually go and “do it” without giving up when unforeseen obstacles arise. A creative mind and a brave heart. A mind to find the way forward and a heart to issue the rallying cry. In sum, leadership. Where does it come from (within the realm of university life)? How can each individual faculty member contribute in this regard?


Not just from class time, I believe, although careful organization of each course, and of groups of related courses are important. Team work, oral presentations, and significant research and writing assignments are effective ways of helping students acquire or improve leadership and communication skills. Team projects involving service to the community are especially productive in this regard, especially when students get to know first hand about the homeless, the poor, the sick, the old and the young who have lost their way and/or their means of support, and who are asking for help. Compassion and empathy are fundamental for effective leadership toward good causes, and both can be fostered by first hand knowledge of suffering.