Growing up, I dreamed of becoming a teacher, inspired by my mother and grandparents who were also educators. Observing the conversations between teachers and students at a young age made me realize that education is an ongoing, lifelong, and dynamic process. However, my experiences with traditional education systems, which often prioritize the teacher over the student, have shown me the importance of student-centered approaches. I believe that prioritizing student engagement is crucial to creating an effective and fulfilling learning experience, particularly in the art field where interaction, inspiration, and enjoyment are key. As a teacher, I see myself as a two-way bridge between teachers and students and aspire to serve as a mentor to underrepresented groups, preparing our students to be active citizens in an increasingly diverse society. I am committed to promoting diversity and recognizing the obstacles that women and minorities encounter in the arts. Diversity in the classroom extends beyond where you are from or your political views. It encompasses how you think, listen, learns, and communicate. Facilitating dialogue is a powerful tool that I will utilize in my classroom. The significance of debate in academia is not about winning or losing but rather about learning new perspectives and critical thinking.

As an art lecturer, I encourage my students to consider their roles in alleviating the vast inequities that shape our world today, particularly in their film and photography projects. When I taught photography and multimedia in Iran, I broke the rules of traditional teaching by engaging students in free discussions, group assignments, and collective projects which they had not accomplished before my classes. As a new professor, I will continue that approach. Additionally, as we experience a more diverse environment in the US regarding my method, I will include diversity and inclusion in my teaching approach. I believe that our differences make us special, and higher education provides us with the opportunity to step away from what we have always known to be true and view the world through someone else's eyes. Diversity in the classroom should be openly discussed and celebrated, and I strive to create an environment where students can express their ideas, opinions, and worldviews without fear.

In the summer of 2023, I will be teaching a course on Contemporary Documentary Film at Duke University. With my background in Engineering, Cinema Studies, and Experimental and Documentary Arts, as well as my experience as a Teaching Assistant for courses such as Traditions in Documentary Studies, Space Time and Film, and Capstone Seminar, I am well-equipped to create a comprehensive and engaging course that will appeal to students from diverse backgrounds. During Traditions in Documentary Studies, I led individual class discussions and interactive sessions with a class of 12 students based on the resources they watched or read before class. I also participated in helping the instructor as a mentor, providing feedback and grading assignments for two other courses that I assisted.

I intend to start the class with a survey to understand students' experiences and expectations. Based on their responses, I will announce the films we will watch, the festivals we will evaluate, the texts we will read, and the assignments we will complete. The course will cover the theory of documentary studies, as well as the aesthetics and technology that have developed over time, enabling us to create films that were once impossible. The course will analyze films such as Waltz with Bashir, Avenge But One of My Two Eyes, Stories We Tell, Austerlitz, One Child Nation, Radiography of a Family, My Imaginary Country, and All the Beauty and the Bloodshed. We will also examine documentary film festivals such as IDFA in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Visions du Réel in Nyon, Switzerland, CPH: DOX in Copenhagen, Denmark, and True/False in the USA. Since this class is considered a multidisciplinary course, we will discuss not only the films but also the management, programming, advertising, and marketing of the festivals.

Students will learn to think critically about documentaries by writing reflections as assignments and short creative pieces in class. They will also be required to take on roles as communications specialists, programmers, screeners, or managers of an imaginary film festival. My aim is to improve student's skills in group work and determine if we can have an interdisciplinary film festival at Duke. Since my short documentaries have been accepted in international film festivals, I will apply my personal experiences beyond the theories in the books. A rubric will be provided to clarify their grades, and you can find the course outline here.

In the future, I plan to design courses such as "Immigration in Documentaries" and "Language, Time, Space, and Cinema," drawing from my background as a documentary filmmaker and my experience as an international student at Duke University, coming from the Middle East with teaching experience in Persian. In "Immigration in Documentaries," my students and I will analyze documentary art from the perspective of immigration studies and take a human rights approach in further analysis.

As an instructor, it is crucial to continuously improve and update one's knowledge and skills. To achieve this, I have taken various courses, such as the "Fundamentals of College Teaching" and "Teaching the Diverse Learners" courses, which allowed me to receive a Certificate in College Teaching. During the "Fundamentals of College Teaching" course, I learned about student-centered approaches to course design, classroom activities, and learning assessment. I applied these techniques to my course design, which hopefully will greatly benefit my students.

Moreover, during the "Teaching the Diverse Learners" course, I observed other instructors' classes and received feedback from them after being observed. This experience helped me to see different teaching approaches and allowed me to improve my own teaching skills. I also realized the importance of considering inclusion, diversity, and equity when designing courses, which I try to incorporate into my teaching.

In conclusion, it can be said that for an instructor in documentary filmmaking, having connections to the industry is just as important as having knowledge. I take advantage of upcoming opportunities, such as The Southern Documentary Convening, to build up my network and to help my students improve their own. Moreover, I hope to participate in prestigious film festivals in order to gain valuable experience that I can share with my students. By doing so, I aim to provide my students with a well-rounded education that combines theory with practical experience and prepares them for success in the field of documentary filmmaking.