Brian Wabler

Teaching Philosophy

Important skills I want to teach my students

The most important skills that I teach students are critical thinking, argumentation, and writing. Students need to be able to evaluate sources of information and understand their biases and limitations, especially as sources of information proliferate in the world. They also need to become strong speakers and writers who can present an argument clearly and defend it with evidence.

Teaching methods to reach these goals

My classes have a lot of written assignments and opportunities like debates for students to present and defend their arguments. Students also have a number of projects that help them to put themselves in the shoes of people in the past-that is, use their “historical imagination.”

My favorite projects

I enjoy the Tournament of Greatness, a project in which each student takes on the identity of a leader we have studied during the year. They have a tournament-style series of debates in which each student tries to prove that he or she was the greatest leader of all time. This is always fun for the students and spectators and gets the students to consider the different ways in which one can be a good leader.

What I like best about teaching at Seven Hills

I enjoy the freedom and time that Seven Hills teachers are given to explore ideas and teach in creative ways. The tight-knit community, including small class sizes, enables teachers to connect with every student and get to know them over the course of their career here. This allows teachers to help the students to improve and grow.