BLAISE J. NOTO

 Assistant Professor, Mass Communication

  School of Visual, Performing and Communication Arts

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 Barton College Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning: New Faculty Orientation Certificate

                                                               

WHY I TEACH

Coming from a working class background, receiving an advanced education was very important to me.  As an undergraduate, my support system came mostly from my dean and professors at Wesleyan University, and later at The Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania. .  They inspired me to open myself to new ideas, challenged me creatively and intellectually, and passed along their knowledge and insights to enhance my education and worldview. Most of all, they encouraged and helped me build my self-confidence to pursue a career that seemed like a pipe dream. It’s this quality of experience that I want to give back to my students, to help them be intellectually curious,  and to develop the talents and skills they need to pursue their career goals in communications and/or public relations -- or in any career path they choose to pursue.

 

After being in corporate America for most of my professional career, I saw teaching at the university level as a natural progression. Over my 25+ years, I had to train and teach a staff of over 50 young people — at different levels of knowledge, competency and in different disciplines — the public relations skills needed to perform at their jobs, to work as a team, and excel in a highly competitive and fast-paced environment.  I had to be a good listener; be able to work with each person individually and the department as a whole; to pass along my knowledge and insights to inspire them; and to encourage each student to do his or her best work.   Challenging at times to be sure, but amazingly fulfilling.  Many of these people are now top PR and marketing executives in major corporations. 

 

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                                                      MY TEACHING PHILOSOPHY

In my teaching, I use analytical and critical thinking approaches for my students to learn and begin to develop the tools and skill sets they will need to compete and excel in the business and/or non-profit worlds. I stress social scientific research as a process for them to identify and comprehend the assumptions, variables, influences, and intentions of various communication or public relations situations and challenges.  It is from this vantage point that they will be best able to propose viable and effective solutions to problem solving as well as conceiving and implementing strategic communication campaigns.   

 

I also give my students a strong academic foundation in communication theory, and the key concepts and principles in public relation and marketing, and relate them to the practical application in real-world experiences. I encourage and challenge them to be more inquisitive, to think more creatively, not to be afraid of failure for trying something different, and to broaden their knowledge base outside their comfort zones. 

 

In as much as possible, I select and design case studies, assignments and essays that make them think analytically and outside the box, and integrate key concepts and principles taught in class into new learning experiences.  I have watched my students grow over the semester in developing more polished ways of approaching their studies, and writing and expressing themselves with insightful and learned points-of-view that have brought them to another level in their education. 

 

Also, I not only integrate my professional experiences into my teaching, but bring in current social, political and cultural events and trends to increase the “relevancy factor” for students as well as have them see the interconnectivity of the public relations principles and concepts they are being taught and how they are practiced in the real world.  Being culturally and visually literate are very important to my teaching goals, as are my students honing their oral, written and visual communication skills, and unsderstanding the social, political, economic and historical context and influences in not only mass communications but across many other disciplines.  

 

I stress writing in all my classes, and encourage my students to feel comfortable with their original thoughts and ideas.  My purpose in doing this is two-fold: to help my students develop and be confident in their thought processes, giving shape to their ideas, and to help them become more sophisticated and creative thinkers and writers.

 

To that end, I write detailed comments on every case study, essay or assignment I give, and know how each and every student in my class is developing in terms of his/her thought process and academic development. I do not grade on a curve; I grade on personal academic performance and improvement. 

 

I also keep current with digital and social media trends, and immersive and participatory media platforms which combine the digital and traditional media to create inventive campaigns that involve the audience like never before. Audience engagement and participation in creating and perpetuating the narrative is what is becoming the new norm in media communications, and to have students learn and experience the importance of integrated social/traditional media in conceiving and executing strategic campaigns remains one of my teaching goals.  

 

My overall teaching philosophy expresses my genuine concern for my students’ education; working as much as possible with students needing extra help; inspiring them to take themselves to the next level; knowing what interests them, and integrating that into lessons and coursework; always being on time and being prepared; being available to them in evenings and on weekends when necessary; really listening to them; showing respect to them and being someone they respect; advising and encouraging them on their career questions and goals, being reliable and trustworthy; and working as hard as I can to give them the best education and academic experiences possible.  

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