My Teaching Philosophy

Teaching Philosophy

In my opinion one of the most important things about teaching, speaking, or writing is knowing who your audience is.  As an educator I realize that I am teaching students.  Not all students are the same and as such I feel that an educator should try to learn about who each of their students are in order to spark interest in whatever subject they are teaching. Students who are not motivated or do not find a subject interesting or relevant to them does not do as well as one that does.  Educators should be able to find that spark and try to stimulate learning in all of their students, it is their job. It is my job as an educator to let students learn in every capacity.

School is no longer a place solely for academics.  Students should be learning a multitude of things.  These should include but are not limited to what they are good at, what their interests are, and ideas about who they are as individuals.  Learning mathematics, science, and  history, while essential, need to play into something much larger: the role that the student will have as a citizen of the world.  Allowing our students the opportunity to grow and learn without hesitation in a safe environment is the best gift that we, as educators, can give them.  The saying "to teach is to touch lives" is true when what you're teaching are life lessons in addition to the curriculum.  The curriculum will allow these students to make informed decisions and live their lives out to their fullest potential and that is what I, as an educator, strive for.  I strive to teach the entire person.  My students will learn the curriculum and how it affects their lives but they will come out with something more too.  These things are important because forcing students to learn rote facts and historical narratives are fine but they often do not allow the student to entertain the ideas of the world.

Our world is changing at an unprecedented pace and we, as educators, need to keep up with it.  Remember, that the students that we have in our classrooms today are not going to be in the work-force and in the "real world" tomorrow.  We are teaching our students using the technical and bias hindrances of today for their future tomorrow.  We need to educate the person of today so that they can thrive tomorrow.  If they know just the facts and how to think about them in one dimension they may be left behind in our quick paced society.

Once we realize this, we can begin to understand how essential it is that a love of learning be instilled in our students.  We need to connect our classroom to the outside world and make our students realize that they can transfer their "boring school work" into amazing things out of the classroom.  If we do this our students will not only excel in the classroom environment but they will also excel as a citizen in their communities.  For example, a history teacher can have their students connect current events to historical rhetoric and allow then have their students create predictions and things to circumvent "unfavorable" circumstances that could happen.  The students could then take it to their local government and get policy enacted.  Our students are young but they have the ability to change the world around them and they need to be aware that they can make a difference in the world.  They are not helpless.  This attitude will especially help those students with bad family backgrounds.

Keeping in touch is essential to the facilitation of learning.  If an educator allows the students, parents and/or guardians, and themselves to freely interact the student is more likely to feel that they can succeed or feel motivation in a variety of ways.  Keeping parents and/or guardians informed about what is coming up, what the student is doing, and not always leaving a message about negative things but positive things can influence the way that they see their child and how involved they are with their child.  Imagine how far telling a parent that their child is a wonderful addition to the classroom can go, especially in a "broken" home.   Technology is one way that keeping in touch becomes simple.  E-mail and a class website allow parents and students alike to engage in discussion and see what is going on in the class.

Teachers, students, and parents/guardians can see if learning is effective by numerical grades but more important than those glimpses into a particular time is the way that the student talks and entertains that knowledge base.  Seeing students bring up school related subjects on their own is an indication that they are not only learning but they are interested.  Also, having students engage in dialogue outside of the classroom or in the classroom shows just how much is being learned.  (Dialogue defined as a discussion between two or more people so that they can understand or appreciate how they view a given subject matter.) This could also be see through projects or papers.  For me, while summative assessments are essential, formative assessments are much more useful.  Each student will excel at a particular one of these depending on their learning style and the way they express information the best.  For this reason, in my classroom, we have a multitude of assessment bases so everyone has a chance to show what they have learned.

Technology is advancing and as such introducing our students to the technology of today is essential to the education of the future citizen.  Teaching students how to use technology effectively is important because having the internet with all its information is useless if you do not know how to navigate it.  We have to teach our students to ask the right questions so that they can find and search for what they need quickly and efficiently.  Technology can also help students to pursue collective in or outside of the classroom.  For example, using a class wiki to allow dialogue and collaboration could easily lead to not only wonderful ideas but putting them into action because they have networked with each other utilizing each individual's skills and gifts.

Since I feel so strongly about these things, I would like to work in a student centered school.  I would like to have each of my students feel like they are an integral part of my classroom and an integral part of the school.  Ideally, I would like to make the school a home away from home for my students and any students that I encounter.