Clinical Teaching and the Tutorial for Final Year Dental Students - Dissertation Example

The goal of this reflection is to evaluate and assess my teaching experience for the last two years teaching final-year dental students in the Acute Dental Care Department of King's College School of Dentistry at Guy's Hospital. I hope that this reflection/commentary would really help in my academic and educational development especially as I would be linking theories and the practice with each other. My knowledge in the theories of dentistry and of teaching has improved significantly due to my relevant training, and it has helped me understand the issues which I have encountered in my teaching practice.

Moreover, my immersion and knowledge of educational theories which were initially unfamiliar made me eventually realize that the educational process is a rich and dynamic process, even more, complicated than I originally anticipated. I am hoping that this portfolio will illustrate my improved perception of the art of teaching and a developing process of evaluating students fairly and adequately. These are elements of the teaching process which I feel are an essential element of my goals as an educator.

Biggs (2003) discusses the importance of teaching and learning and how it should ensure that students can transform declarative knowledge or theories and procedural knowledge into practical functioning knowledge. In effect, securing experience may be essential in order for teachers to gain more confidence and to engage in further education. I feel it is essential to apply reflection to the teaching process and to regularly evaluate intentions, goals, and other applications while acknowledging the fact that the content of learning is not always as significant as what the students learn and retain in the end.

In order to establish a reflection or commentary which would sufficiently express my thoughts, feelings, and actions in relation to my teaching practice in the last two years, the chronological and thematic processes would be utilized.