My Teaching Bio
I retired from AT&T with over 41 years of service in 2007. That same year I graduated from college with a BA in Psychology. Shortly thereafter, I began substitute teaching in both public and private schools. I’m now in my 17th school year and have been in 170 schools in that capacity. In 2021 I received my TEFL and TESOL certifications and began teaching students online. Thus far, I’ve taught students in such diverse places as Detroit, Los Angeles, New Brunswick, NH, and various Asian countries (mostly in Beijing, China). In the near future, I hope to begin teaching students in the Middle East and South America.
I began my capacity as a firearms instructor in 2008, and it has been an enlightening experience for me. I’ve now had over 500 students, and I don’t think I’ve ever taught a class in exactly the same way twice. I believe there are 3 reasons for this. The first is that the makeup of each class is unique. Each student is different, bringing to the class their own personality and combination of experience, knowledge, and abilities. The second reason is that the subject matter is anything but static. Laws, equipment, and other relevant factors constantly change. Class time is very limited, and material is added, deleted, or changed based on my perception of its relative value at that time. The third reason is that I also change. Like everyone else, my perception of the world around us is in a constant state of flux (is that an oxymoron?), and it will logically be reflected in how I approach my responsibilities as an instructor. . I also learn along with my students, and this too may be reflected in changes I initiate. Unlike the makeup of most classrooms, the students I have in a self-defense class are often strangers to one another, as well as to me. I’ve also had students who range in age from late teens to mid-eighties in the same class. These challenges have taught me that as an instructor I must be flexible, and capable of adjusting to both people and circumstances in real time. I do not fear these challenges but rather welcome them.
My teaching experience in a (hopefully) salutary capacity has increased my already keen interest in the universal dilemma of human existence, or as Francis Shaeffer put it, “the mannishness of man”. Each of us is singularly unique within the whole of the human community, and I hope the appreciation I’ve come to have for that fact helps me to better serve each of my students as the unique individuals they are. In striving for this, I’ve come to regard my capacity as a firearms instructor to be less vocational and more ministerial. I also consider all of my students as my students for life. Within the context of the subject at hand, I will always make myself available to you as best I can. Do not hesitate to send me an email if you think I can be of help in any way.