Being in Love with Knowledge | Bailey Szustak (Teaching Better)

Ethics and Education

At CEE, we think a lot about good teaching. This is the third episode in our 2021 Teaching Series.

Bailey Szustak is a PhD student at the University of Illinois at Chicago. In this episode, Bailey talks about teaching new philosophy students in a way that helps them feel at ease with and compelled by philosophy. After all, that's what the word 'philosophy' means--a love of knowledge.

Bailey says: "How can I make my teaching something that every single student, or as many as possible...finds themselves in what we're doing in a way that is accessible to them? So not scaring them off by immediately throwing them into Kant... But asking questions and thinking about ideas that are relevant to their life. And then it turns out, they've been doing philosophy without realizing it."

Episode transcript

PS: Bailey is also a welder and a painter! Check out some of her art here: https://thefabulosopher.wordpress.com/art/

How do you engage your students? Do you teach "covert philosophy"? Send us an email or leave us a voice message.

Produced by Carrie Welsh. Interview recorded at APA Central, February 2020. Music is Blessed Horizons by Ketsa and Cascades by Podington Bear.