Pedagogy for the Professoriate: The Personal Meets the Political

Abstract

In 2005, after decades as an educator in many different settings, I came to reflect more deeply than ever before about the core values that inspire my teaching. This deeper exploration came about when I was invited to lead a seminar for pretenured faculty organized by the University of Massachusetts Boston’s (UMB’s) Center for the Improvement of Teaching (CIT). This is a responsibility usually entrusted to wise and experienced teachers, and I was delighted to be chosen for this position. At the same time, I was challenged to discover whether I was up to the task and to discover what resources— personal and professional—I could draw on for this important work.