My teaching philosophy is fundamentally that a teacher's role is to facilitate learning by students, help them develop their ability to apply what they learn, and instill in them a lasting curiosity for knowledge. Fundamental to performing those roles effectively is keeping students engaged. I attempt to do so by following a basic guideline: keep things interesting. And that means keeping things interesting for a range of students with varying skills, learning styles, and backgrounds. I therefore incorporate in my classes a variety of strategies and formats in an effort to reach all of my students, allowing them to make the most of their abilities; I choose readings that are not too dry or technical; I incorporate images and videos into lectures, both so students can better recall course content and so they can place themselves in the shoes of political actors to better understand their decisions; I use humor and other tactics during class to draw students away from other options such as checking social media or getting in a short nap; I tell personal anecdotes during lectures to illustrate complex theories and include real world case studies to bring difficult concepts to life; I invite students try to answer the questions other students, or I, ask; and I have students do small group work in class to grapple with the material. A major goal for each course is for students to leave with a depth of knowledge and skills related to course content. However, my main aim is for students to walk out of my classroom and into the world with the ability to apply what they have learned about political science or intercultural studies in their day to day lives because, in the end, most of their interactions in life will be both political and intercultural.