Tyler Brown ’16: Bringing Curiosity Into the Classroom

“Bring your curiosity,” Tyler Brown ’16 tells his students at Mt. Blue High School. As a History teacher, he wants his students to do more than memorize dates and names. He puts them at the center of their own learning, encouraging them to ask “why?” and dig deeper into the curriculum. 

As Tyler thinks back on his time at UMF he especially recalls one lesson that continues to guide his teaching: “One thing they really drove home as a Secondary Ed major at UMF was that fostering curiosity was important to improving learning.” Today, he puts that philosophy into practice by encouraging his students to remain curious about the world around them. 

In addition to being an Education major, Tyler’s path to teaching was shaped by academic interests that extended beyond the Education program. While at UMF, he also majored in Psychology. He encourages current and future Education students to explore psychology beyond the required coursework, particularly as a way to better understand the scientific processes involved in learning.

“Psychology electives are the best to complement an Education degree,” he reflects. “What I learned during undergrad in the Psychology program was just as useful as what I learned in the Education program.”

Even after graduating from UMF in 2016, Tyler remains an active member in the Farmington community. As an outdoor enthusiast, he spends time exploring Maine’s Western Foothills and is still involved in the outdoor recreation scene in the Farmington area. Tyler oversees Mt. Blue High School’s Skate Club and has recently been working to revitalize the Dragon’s Nest Skate Park near UMF’s campus. Through this work, he’s helping improve a resource that his students and other community members can enjoy.

In addition to improving the skateboarding scene in Farmington, Tyler is also pursuing a master’s degree in Counseling Psychology at UMF with a focus on creative arts as therapy.  UMF’s flexibility allows him to work towards a master’s degree while continuing to teach History at Mt. Blue High School. 

The combination of teaching, counseling, and community involvement reflects the way Tyler approaches education. For him, the classroom is not simply a place to deliver information. It is a place where students can develop questions and become more engaged with the world around them.

For Tyler, it all started at UMF.