The Teaching Self and the Name Game

Abstract

During my first year teaching at Howard University, I learned quickly the importance of naming—that is, being clear about who I am and my motivations for teaching. Early on, I learned that self-assessment is just as important as envisioning, planning, and organizing my courses. Naming my biases, shortcomings, and fears was just as important as helping my students discover or move past their own. Unless I engaged in a routine process of self-assessment, my unchecked inherent biases, shortcomings, and fears would inevitably spill out into the classroom.