Philosophy of Education
Teaching is a career that requires a lot more than most other careers. By this I mean not everyone is cut out for teaching. It not only takes the ability to share your knowledge, but it also takes a certain passion. To be affective as an educator, you need to truly enjoy the struggle of making kids understand. You need to have the patience, diligence, and desire to teach students, not only topics in the classroom, but in the real world too.
As a future educator I believe I should prepare the students not only in their education, but also in their life. I do not want to shape them as a whole, but give them a better understanding of the world and exemplify for them the qualities of a good person, so they can hopefully grow up to be even better people. In addition, children should learn the curriculum and they should have fun while learning it. If education is not fun for me, as the teacher, then why would it be fun for the students? My goal would be to make kids learn without even knowing they’re learning. By this I mean, if my teaching is seemless, then the learning should be seemless. Looking back on when I was a student, some of the things that I enjoyed learning about and that took very little effort to master were things that I could subconsciously put “two and two” together. This is also why I firmly believe in Progressivism. Children should learn from real life scenarios; learning is an active thing, it is very much so intellectual and emotions should all play a huge part in the educational world (Pugach 2009).
I believe that all children need care, support and someone that they can count on. One frustrating thing as a teacher is that not all of students have someone that they can count on other than themselves. Also, not all children have someone who genuinely cares and supports them in everything they do. As an educator, I believe part of my job is to make each and every one of my students feel as if they have value and worth, because each child does have value and worth to this world.
A learning environment should be open, fun and not intimidating. I want my classroom to be inviting for students. I feel like a boring classroom results in a boring class. The more appealing the room can be, the better. Since I strive to be a science teacher, I want to fill the room with different posters, pictures, and decorations that are able to make the room interesting, yet not be a distraction. I also want my classroom to be a place that always has the door open. By this I mean I want students to feel free to swing by my classroom between classes or after school for whatever reason. If they need help with some topics, a question on homework, or a personal question, I want students to be able to come to my classroom for advice.
As far as curriculum, within a classroom goes, it should be built accordingly to get each and every student up to or above the standard for their age level. In order to make the learning part of education run smoothly, both student and teacher need to put forth their best effort. Students will, inevitably, run across things that do not come easy to them, but in the right environment and setting, they will be able to learn and grasp the material in time. There is a lot to learn in one school year so time management is crucial. As an educator, I will strive to have lesson plans planned out a week or more in advance to prepare the students for what is to come. Also, my plans will be flexible in that if the students struggle with one topic but excel in another, time will be spent on such topics accordingly.
Curriculum and environment are not the only factors in having an effective classroom. The qualities and behaviors of the teacher play a huge role in the education of students. A teacher should be caring, attentive, supportive and everything else that a parent should or would be to a child. If a child does not have a parent who cares or supports them, then they will at least have a teacher they can count on to help them in struggles within the learning environment. Educators should be willing to listen, even in tough situations. If students can build trust with their teachers, the students will come away with a whole lot more than just a grade for the class.
Outside of the learning environment, other significant factors come to the surface; specifically family and community. A teacher should involve these individuals in these ways: they should allow parents, community and other members of the school district to be involved with the learning of all students. The more help that students can get outside of the classroom, the better off everyone will be. Additionally, the more people who are on the side of education, the better off all educators will be. If family is involved with their child’s education, it is proven to have a positive effect on them in the long run.
Teaching is not a career that can be taken lightly. It is a very demanding and time consuming responsibility that is also very rewarding in return. Though teaching takes a lot of work, it should be second nature for the educator. A teacher needs to be able to provide support for students at all times. Also, the environment needs to promote learning while making students comfortable at the same time. As for the curriculum, the teacher needs to find the balance that challenges students to get to where they need to be, yet paced properly so that students can keep up. In the end though, the teacher has to be whole lot more than just a teacher. Although teachers don’t make the most money, they are rewarded in so many other ways that no other careers can offer. It’s not about how much money you make, it’s about how much of a difference you make in the lives of your students.
Teaching is a career that requires a lot more than most other careers. By this I mean not everyone is cut out for teaching. It not only takes the ability to share your knowledge, but it also takes a certain passion. To be affective as an educator, you need to truly enjoy the struggle of making kids understand. You need to have the patience, diligence, and desire to teach students, not only topics in the classroom, but in the real world too.
As a future educator I believe I should prepare the students not only in their education, but also in their life. I do not want to shape them as a whole, but give them a better understanding of the world and exemplify for them the qualities of a good person, so they can hopefully grow up to be even better people. In addition, children should learn the curriculum and they should have fun while learning it. If education is not fun for me, as the teacher, then why would it be fun for the students? My goal would be to make kids learn without even knowing they’re learning. By this I mean, if my teaching is seemless, then the learning should be seemless. Looking back on when I was a student, some of the things that I enjoyed learning about and that took very little effort to master were things that I could subconsciously put “two and two” together. This is also why I firmly believe in Progressivism. Children should learn from real life scenarios; learning is an active thing, it is very much so intellectual and emotions should all play a huge part in the educational world (Pugach 2009).
I believe that all children need care, support and someone that they can count on. One frustrating thing as a teacher is that not all of students have someone that they can count on other than themselves. Also, not all children have someone who genuinely cares and supports them in everything they do. As an educator, I believe part of my job is to make each and every one of my students feel as if they have value and worth, because each child does have value and worth to this world.
A learning environment should be open, fun and not intimidating. I want my classroom to be inviting for students. I feel like a boring classroom results in a boring class. The more appealing the room can be, the better. Since I strive to be a science teacher, I want to fill the room with different posters, pictures, and decorations that are able to make the room interesting, yet not be a distraction. I also want my classroom to be a place that always has the door open. By this I mean I want students to feel free to swing by my classroom between classes or after school for whatever reason. If they need help with some topics, a question on homework, or a personal question, I want students to be able to come to my classroom for advice.
As far as curriculum, within a classroom goes, it should be built accordingly to get each and every student up to or above the standard for their age level. In order to make the learning part of education run smoothly, both student and teacher need to put forth their best effort. Students will, inevitably, run across things that do not come easy to them, but in the right environment and setting, they will be able to learn and grasp the material in time. There is a lot to learn in one school year so time management is crucial. As an educator, I will strive to have lesson plans planned out a week or more in advance to prepare the students for what is to come. Also, my plans will be flexible in that if the students struggle with one topic but excel in another, time will be spent on such topics accordingly.
Curriculum and environment are not the only factors in having an effective classroom. The qualities and behaviors of the teacher play a huge role in the education of students. A teacher should be caring, attentive, supportive and everything else that a parent should or would be to a child. If a child does not have a parent who cares or supports them, then they will at least have a teacher they can count on to help them in struggles within the learning environment. Educators should be willing to listen, even in tough situations. If students can build trust with their teachers, the students will come away with a whole lot more than just a grade for the class.
Outside of the learning environment, other significant factors come to the surface; specifically family and community. A teacher should involve these individuals in these ways: they should allow parents, community and other members of the school district to be involved with the learning of all students. The more help that students can get outside of the classroom, the better off everyone will be. Additionally, the more people who are on the side of education, the better off all educators will be. If family is involved with their child’s education, it is proven to have a positive effect on them in the long run.
Teaching is not a career that can be taken lightly. It is a very demanding and time consuming responsibility that is also very rewarding in return. Though teaching takes a lot of work, it should be second nature for the educator. A teacher needs to be able to provide support for students at all times. Also, the environment needs to promote learning while making students comfortable at the same time. As for the curriculum, the teacher needs to find the balance that challenges students to get to where they need to be, yet paced properly so that students can keep up. In the end though, the teacher has to be whole lot more than just a teacher. Although teachers don’t make the most money, they are rewarded in so many other ways that no other careers can offer. It’s not about how much money you make, it’s about how much of a difference you make in the lives of your students.