When Lesley Smith asked me to write on my "philosophy of teaching and the role of writing in it," I didn't question her, as I've learned the wisdom of assuming that Lesley knows what she's doing. But I did wonder why anyone might pay attention to what I had to say on the subject, and if I weren't being incredibly presumptuous in agreeing to call my homely collection of aphorisms a "philosophy." I'm flattered by the request, but must confess that even after 25 years at George Mason University, I still often feel before entering a class the same nerves I felt in my twenties: "Well, here goes!" My philosophy of teaching can be summed up in a few principles, but through each one of them runs the critical power of writing for both teacher and learner.

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