“We are not here merely to make a living. We are here to enrich the world.”

                                                            -Woodrow Wilson-

Hello, and welcome to my blog!  My name is Tim Bower, and I am a graduate student at SUNY Oswego.  I have a Bachelor’s degree in History & Political Science from SUNY Oswego with a focus in American History, and am currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Curriculum & Instruction for Secondary Social Studies.  I plan to graduate in December of 2009.

 The Purpose:

 The purpose of this portfolio is to provide classmates, teachers, and future employers, with proof on why I would make a good teacher.  Also, its purpose is to educate onlookers of my blog on my teaching approaches, practices, and overall philosophy as a teacher.

My Teaching Philosophy:

  I am very committed to providing a learning environment that is both exciting and rigorous, one that empowers both student and teacher in pursuing learning.  My role as the teacher is to enable students to obtain an historical context through which they can understand the motivations behind the decisions made by historical figures, critically evaluate those motivations, and assess the significance of the actions taken as they analyze the events themselves. More importantly, I want my students to understand, intellectually and emotionally, that their present lives are the result of these historical events.