I employ a range of teaching methods underpinned by Social Constructivist philosophies of learning. Enquiry based learning that includes identifying theoretical and practical problems to solve, using artmaking, writing and logic to find possible solutions, followed by relfection on the whole process are intergral to my teaching. I employ variations of these methods of teaching in all the contexts in which I teach, from Art Theory Lectures to Research Writing Workshops and Learning in the Art Museum.  

I believe that art theory is learnt best when relationships are made between theory and practice. I create oppertunites for students to apply theory to a range of real life situations, for example, creating artworks, posters and performances in reponse to artworks and theoretical concepts. We go on filed trips to museums, and other places, such as the zoo, the games arcade, and the city centre. In my classes, we employ walking, and other posthumanist research methods in order to explore looking at the world from a range of perspectives. We often do projects that result in public artworks. Apart from making the campus more interesting and beautiful, these public art projects provide students with a real audience for their works, and reinforce their sense of belonging at university. In the process, the students claim the space of  their learning, literally and metaphoricially. Knowing that their works will be seen in public motivates students to work harder, to take care and have pride in their work. They experience great satisfaction and pride in their achievements when their works are presented, and received with enthusiasm [as they often are] in the public domain.  

In lectures I encourage writing as a form of thinking, by started every lecture with writing tasks that relate to the topic. I complete the writing task with the students, creating trust and modeling the ways that we share and respond to eachothers’ work. The writing and sharing at the start of each lesson increases students’ participation in discussions, their and the ways they learn from each other. This practice also enables me to monitor students’ understanding of issues raised. I stimulate students’ interest by selecting a range of cultural products to look at, including digital slideshows, posters, actual artifacts, students’ work, music, poetry, literature and images the students select. I have used live chickens and dead fish for drawing, as well as brought baking ingredients and made cakes to investigate theories around language and visual analyses.