The philosophical approach I utilize as the guidelines for instruction is inclusive of two major premises.  First, in order for learning to take place, the student must posses the tools necessary to obtain and retain new information.  Second, an instructional paradigm for subject area teaching - specifically the sciences. Students require tools to learn.  These tools include student-owned educational strategies.  These strategies will facilitate student learning across the curriculum as well as in their future educational endeavors.  Students can not be expected to comprehend and retain information that is both new and complex through traditional stand and deliver (lecture-based) instruction alone.  It is essential to evaluate student prior knowledge in order to bridge the gap between preconceived and erroneous information with fact.  Current instructional dogma must be reversed.  Furthermore, instruction must reflect the different learning styles of people.  Instruction through recognition of the learner's multiple intelligences in conjunction with varied multimedia technology will further facilitate learning and retention.  People learn best when information is presented through multiple inputs.  My second premise is to approach biology education through laboratory (hands-on) based instruction.  This will encourage subject-area learning by connecting every day phenomenon, situations and issues with classroom inquiry.  Students learn best when they can relate or associate with something familiar. Ultimately, learning strategies, recognition of different learning styles and technology in conjunction with relevant hands-on experience, will facilitate student engagement in their education and therefore learning. Of course stimulating the right hemisphere of the brain will stimulate imagination, exploration, and possibly vision - intangibles that are invaluable to enabling a person's full potential as a learner to manifest.  Today's curriculum are solely geared toward the left minded individual with all the focus in language, logic, and math.  We must attempt to draw from that which seems to be suppressed for the most part in todays society - the right hemisphere - and therefore stimulate the full potential of the human mind.  I make an effort towards this goal by incorporating art, creativity through model making, projects, films, field trips, and other none traditional modes of teaching my subject area.