I would like here to give you a brief overview of why I teach the way I do. My approach and expectations may be different from what you have encountered before in your high school or Haverford/BMC classrooms, so I'd like to lay my cards on the table from the beginning.

• Teaching is to some extent a matter of conveying knowledge that I have and you don't, but more importantly, its purpose is to teach you how to formulate useful questions about what you're learning and to develop techniques to answer them. This puts a good deal of responsibility for how the class goes on your shoulders: I want to adapt what I think you should know in terms of what you, as a unique collection of individuals, would like to know. Accordingly, I expect you to invest actively in what goes on in the classroom, both in terms of input and feedback. Don't think of yourself as a sponge, passively soaking up erudition; think of yourself as participating in a contract, where we have responsibilities to each other for making the class a successful one.
  
  
• Success in my class depends on how far and how deep you're willing to go into the subject matter. If your priorities or interests are elsewhere, if you're content just to pass the class, that's understandable--we all have to make choices about where to place our energy and time--but I encourage you to engage to a greater degree than that. I hope you'll take advantage of my time to continue discussions outside of class, and that you'll do some exploring on your own initiative.
  
  
• Success also depends on risk-taking. There is no shame in trying and failing; risking being wrong is often an important part of the process of learning to be right. You'll find that I often ask you to do things that seem beyond you; see what you can do, and you will surprise yourself! Another part of risk-taking is flexibility: I challenge you give up the safe, tried-and-true learning techniques you may have depended on in the past and to try the different approaches I propose, even if ultimately you decide your way is better.
  
  
• Your contract is not only with me, but more importantly with the other members of the class. How effectively you learn is a function of what you give to the classroom community, as well as what you take from your peers. What your classmates get out of the class will be influenced by the degree to which you are responsible for being prepared, engaged, present, and on time.