My Philosophy of Education

(A work in progress)

                   The purpose of education is to increase students’ understanding and knowledge by providing safe and creative environments that support healthy social, emotional, physical, and cognitive development. Students should come away with a thirst for information and a desire to learn. Education should help students develop life skills, giving them the opportunity for a successful future. Students can learn from everyone’s experiences and those experiences can assist in a better understanding of cultural backgrounds and values as well as the material being covered in class. Education should not be focused on standardized testing or memorizing facts but instead on how well the student’s truly understand the material covered. Can they talk about it in discussions? Write about it? Incorporate it in a project? Use critical thinking skills to further analyze it?  Becoming educated does not mean one can learn how to take a test. Instead it means that he or she can apply the knowledge they have learned to a greater picture.

                All children learn in different ways and under different conditions. Some of these styles are teacher centered while others are student centered. From my experience, if material is covered in a fun, interactive manner students become more involved and retain the information longer. This, however, is not true for every student. Everyone has different styles of learning that work best for them. In some cases having a student- centered, interactive, hands-on, group learning experience can be very positive and beneficial but for others it can be challenging. If a teacher teaches in only one style it can cause some students to fall behind and do poorly because their needs are not being met. Some children learn best in a teacher- centered environment where they take notes and listen to the teacher lecture on a subject. They do not thrive in group settings.  It is important for all students to learn how to work in a group, do creative work, and take notes as well. As a teacher, I think it is important to find a balance between the needs of all the students in your class so that everyone’s learning style can be met and so that others can practice learning in different styles. It is also important to allow students, when appropriate, to do some of their projects or assessments in a form that they feel comfortable or excel in. To give them options to be creative, analytical, logical, etc.

                Classroom curriculum should include the basics as well as incorporating other activities to contribute to children’s healthy social, emotional, intellectual, and physical development. These basics are reading, writing, math and science as well as art, music, theatre, P.E. and computer lab. Curriculum should be somewhat mandated by the state to try to give students across the state similar material. Teachers however can take their own spin on things and come up with their own assignments. For example in fourth grade we studied the Oregon Trail so our school made covered wagon trains where we all had to build and create our own covered wagon. We also read books, wrote journals, and played computer games that revolved around life on the Oregon Trail. A classroom I volunteered in was studying the life cycle and they observed the life cycle of salmon. They read about it, observed it, wrote about it, drew pictures and in the end created books. I think that curriculum should be very integrated so that all the children’s strengths in the classroom can be supported. This brings me to the idea that I believe children should have a say in their education and help create the curriculum. I also believe that developing relationships with peers as well as with adults is important for positive growth and development.

              Some of the features of a good environment that promote learning are  diverse, welcoming, multicultural school and classrooms. In a multicultural environment everyone’s culture and background is respected and important to learning. Experiences are unique and can be shared for better understanding of subject matter. In a welcoming classroom student’s feel safe and comfortable to ask and answer questions. They are not afraid to, nor do they dread coming to class. My classroom is going to be colorful and stimulating. I plan on having the work of my students hanging up on the walls, pictures they drew as well as poems they wrote etc. The classroom is our community, so it should reflect that. I also think that nature is important to bring into the classroom or else allow the students to spend time in nature. I think having a classroom or school garden can be a very beneficial way of learning and incorporating nature in the curriculum.

            Some basic needs that have to be understood by teachers are social, emotional, physical, and cognitive. For example all children need to be recognized as people and treated so they feel important. Children also need to be active and given opportunities to get their energy out. I would meet these needs by getting to know my students and making sure that every student’s voice and opinion is heard. If I know and understand who my students are then I will know if they need to get up and be active or if they have certain learning styles that work best for them.

            Qualities I think the teacher should have that are important for teaching are being passionate about what they teach and about working with the age that they are teaching. They also should be inspiring so the students are motivated to do their work. Teachers should also be creative so that they can make projects fun and interesting to a variety of kids as well as creative in the way they present the information. Early childhood elementary teachers must be patient. For some children it takes them a while to understand concepts or to be at certain social and emotional levels. Being caring is also important when working with children, letting student’s know you care about them and want them to succeed. Teachers should be understanding and open; someone who is easy to approach and ask for help. They also should be open to the student’s different backgrounds and not have that affect the relationship with the student. Respect is another important quality. If a teacher respects her students then they most likely will respect her in return. Many students need an adult figure that they can trust, someone they can talk to with which they can feel safe. Being a role-model or mentor is also an important quality that teachers must possess. Teachers should also be authoritative and provide their classroom with nurture and control. Many of these qualities may not come naturally, but over time they need to be built up to have a successful classroom.