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My Philosophy of Education
Throughout my life and my preparation to becoming an educator, I have experienced classrooms where students and learning thrive and others that attempt to ‘fill’ students with information that they are expected to regurgitate during test time. I have experienced these different styles of instruction and strategies both as a student and a teacher. I will continue to have these experiences with different teachers, mentors, and students in my own classroom so my beliefs about what works for me and my students will probably change and mature throughout my career. My philosophy of education is composed of my many different learning and teaching experiences, my interpretations of philosophers and researchers and my desire to provide all of my students with the tools they need to become life-long learners.
I believe that education has many different purposes and should provide students with a variety of different opportunities and learning experiences. I want to develop life-long learning skills and a love of learning in my students. I can accomplish this by providing my students with support and by helping them to construct new understanding in fun and unique ways. I want my students to feel empowered by their education. It is also important to me that students build their own opinions and think critically about the curriculum covered. I am not responsible for filling my student with knowledge and facts; instead I must provide my students with multiple perspectives of lessons and units in order to enable them to ‘own’ the material.
As an educator, it will be my responsibility to understand my students’ current levels of understanding and adapt my curriculum to their needs. I also want to include the interests of my students when I am designing lesson plans or units. I believe that students build knowledge through what they have already experienced and to build on the knowledge I must have an understanding of it. By relating material to the interests of my students, they are more likely to enjoy and attend to it. Students in my classroom will be on missions of discovery and it is important to me that they are able to experience material in different ways and from different perspectives. I believe that students learn best through hands-on activities, novel experiences, discovery-learning, group/partner work and when they feel confident and comfortable in their environment. At the same time, I will provide routine, organization and discipline to ensure that our classroom can remain a positive place for all.
My classroom will be organized to encourage understanding, critical thinking and provide my students chances to succeed. The environment will be welcoming to all and free of bias and prejudice from my students and my self. I want to create a community of trust in which my students feel comfortable discussing their opinions and provides an understanding that these opinions are valued by the entire class. I can accomplish this by allowing my students to have some control over their environment. Together we will create a list of classroom rules and responsibilities and appropriate consequences for when these are broken. We will also create a list of problem-solving solutions that will enable students to solve their own disputes when appropriate. The atmosphere will be conducive to learning by provide an assortment of different learning environments for my students to take advantage of. There will be opportunities for group work, individual work, comfortable reading time, and for students to present their final projects in different ways that match their own personal style. My classroom will be a safe environment for sharing ideas and co-constructing knowledge.
I
believe that all people have intelligence and I will integrate
It is important to me that students gain confidence in themselves and in their abilities and that they are able to separate the two. My students will know that a poor grade or reprimand from me does not mean that they are ‘dumb’ or that I don’t like them. My classroom will be culturally and intellectually diverse. My students will understand that different cultural perspectives allow us to gain more insight and deeper understanding of the materials we cover. I will help my students learn to respect different cultures by allowing students to share what is important to them/their family and by providing them with role models from many different cultures. I will also model respect for different cultures by showing interest in my students’ backgrounds, providing instruction in as many languages as possible, allowing my students to use their first language and by sharing my own culture and beliefs, when appropriate.
As a teacher, I will need to undertake many roles throughout the school year. I will model good moral behavior through my fair and equal treatment of students, parents and fellow staff members. I will create a sense of belonging in my students through my genuine interest in their pasts, current interests and uniqueness as individuals. I will be available to students and parents alike, to offer them support, listen to their needs and work with them to find solutions to any problems we may encounter. I will be a guide to my students in times of learning, I will help them create connections to the material and help them use different strategies to improve their abilities to learn and retain information.
My students will also undertake many roles in my classroom. They are learners, teachers, guides and explorers. I will have and post reasonably high expectations (never unobtainable) and help all my students reach their greatest potential. My students will know that they are valued for their strengths, their struggles and the unique characteristics they bring into our classroom. My students will be praised for hard work, skill mastery and valiant attempts and for displaying positive behaviors and moral judgment. They will know that I appreciate their efforts and am proud to be their teacher.
My
philosophy of education will grow and change as I do.
It will act as a support and guide during
difficult times. It will serve as a
reminder of why I am an educator, the students and the opportunities I
want them
to experience. As I learn, reflect and
experience more in education, I will become more aware of my personal
philosophy and become better and more confident in implementing it into
my
classroom and curriculum.
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