The Center for Teaching Excellence would like to recognize Dr. Kathryn Sharp , recipient of the 2018  Distinguished Faculty Award for Teaching . Sharp is an associate professor in the Department of Early Childhood Education in the Clemmer College.
Dr. Kathyrn Sharp portrait
Dr. Sharp holds high expectations for all her students. While this may be daunting at first, they always come around and end up thanking her for it. Not every teacher makes it onto the graduation caps of her students. WWDSD: “What would Dr. Sharp do?” can be seen emblazoned on many a happy grad cap, a testament to the integrity and rigor of her teaching philosophy. As one recent graduate writes , “The expectations that Dr. Sharp had for me as a student molded me to become the teacher I am today. Not only was her instruction impactful and meaningful during my undergraduate studies and residency, but also in my professional teaching to date.”
Through many changes and roles, literacy has remained the focus of her career. Dr. Sharp came to higher education after several years teaching kindergarten and second grade in Memphis city schools. As is often the case, the challenges faced by many of the students in these schools goes beyond academics. Many of her students were coming from unstable homes in high poverty areas and were more worried about where their next meal was coming from than reading and the writing. “When you have second graders who cannot even read their own names yet, your priorities shift. You have to work to meet students where they are and build connections from there,” she says of her strategy. Difficult experiences like these were the crucible in which her teaching philosophy was formed and which continues to inform her work with students in higher education. She also has lots of stories to share.
Stories are central to Dr. Sharp’s approach in the classroom. Though she questions the merits of “edutainment” where the teacher is supposed to entertain students, she understands and values how stories are inherently engaging and help students make personal connections to the concepts they are learning, which in turn helps transfer to long-term memory. “People remember stories. Stories help make the connection between a little piece of something students are learning about and the bigger picture which they may not yet fully grasp.”

The active structure of her class sessions reflects her notion that learning is not a spectator sport. Though students might like to sit back and take in a lecture, she may begin class with a quiz over the readings or recalling and restating previous learning. Dilemmas are another active learning approach. Drawing from her rich experiences in the classroom, these dilemmas put students in tough situations so they can see how core concepts relate to real life.

Teaching is both an art and science for Dr. Sharp. As Gail Godwin said, “Good teaching is one-fourth preparation and three-fourths pure theatre.” She believes artful presentation and personal connections are the best way to present content knowledge and best practices in teaching to students.