Teaching Statement - Carin Jacobs
It's all connected.
On a warm summer evening a few years ago, I received the following email message from a former student; "Dear Mrs. Jacobs, I just had to write and tell you that you and your History of Fashion class really changed my life. You opened my eyes to the connections between clothing and identity.... I see it all around me every day and I always think of you. You taught me about the women's independence movement throughout history and how this was expressed through radical and subtle changes in clothing and fashion. It's all connected! Thank you for opening my eyes.... they will forever be open seeking more, more and more." Wow. What a feeling! Not only did this student understand conceptually what we discussed in class, but she was enlightened to the world around her.... connections, deeper meaning, critical thinking in the real world. It's what a teacher dreams of and it actually changed my life too. I approach every class with a hope that I will ignite another student like that. That we will discover something together that will plant a seed. A seed that will grow outside of my classroom into curiosity, engagement, empathy and a passion to learn more, more, more. The seeds are thus planted and starting to grow.... growing into enlightened, intelligent, creative thinkers that will go out and change the world...one connection at a time.
Passion is contagious.
When I was in grad school I gave a presentation on Fashion of the 1940's, complete with a slide show, a head to toe costume that I made from scratch with a musical soundtrack to the whole presentation. I got other students up out of their seats to try on clothes and dance the lindy hop. Other girls in the class couldn't believe that this was the first time in history that women were commonly allowed to wear pants. What do you mean allowed? Curiosity was up, ears were perked and hands were going up all over the room to ask questions. I had my audience right where I needed them.... interested, engaged and a little pissed off. Ha! What an active discussion we had. When I was done, my professor asked if I had ever considered a career in teaching? That started a journey of learning, traveling and discovering that I wanted to share. Teaching for me is not only sharing my passion and knowledge, but inspiring others to start on their journeys as well, and encouraging students to inspire each other. In one of my classes I assign a project that involves group discussion of design concepts. They are instructed to relate a story back to something meaningful in their lives and design a theatrical stage design around it. By connecting a key issue or theme within the story to something that was life changing for them, I teach the universality of emotion, empathy and deeper connection. The seeds are thus planted and starting to grow.... growing into enlightened, intelligent, creative thinkers that will go out and change the world...one connection at a time.