My

Philosophy
of Teaching
Jennifer Miller
Education 110
November 29, 2013

Jennifer Miller

Education 110

November 29, 2013

The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher
demonstrates. The great teacher inspires. William Arthur Ward

W h e n I g r o w u p a n d b e c o m e a t e a c h e r, I w a n t t o b e t h a t t e a c h e r
that my students never forget not only because I am the cool
teacher but because I made a difference in their lives. I want them to
remember me well after high school as the teacher that made school
fun. I want to inspire children to dream big and work hard to achieve
those dreams. I know this all sounds clich but that is my dream.
That is the reason why I am becoming a teacher to inspire children
b y s h o w i n g t h e m t h e y c a n a c h i e v e a n yt h i n g w i t h h a r d w o r k a n d t o
encourage students to love learning. I have many ideas on how I
intend on running m y classroom; some of which will most likely
change b y the time I actuall y get m y own class.
One aspect of teaching that I have learned about during this
class that I think will help me most when in m y own classroom is
organization. I do not think that the importance of organization could
be stressed enough. Through my observations, I could see how
v i t a l l y s i g n i f i c a n t o r g a n i z a t i o n i s . Th e f i r s t t e a c h e r t h a t I o b s e r v e d
from Rupert Elementar y was not the most organized but the second
t e a c h e r ( f r o m D i v i d e E l e m e n t a r y) w a s v e r y e f f i c i e n t a n d p r e p a r e d . I
could see such a difference this made in the environments of both
classrooms. Careful planning encourages and motivates students and
h e l p s a v o i d b e h a v i o r a n d d i s c i p l i n e p r o b l e m s . (W i s e m a n , K n i g h t a n d
1 | Page

Jennifer Miller

Education 110

November 29, 2013

Cooner) Without proper organization, the students experience in the

classroom would be less than they deserved. Disorganization would
limit the teachers capacity to provide the students the appropriate
atmosphere for learning.
I also want to incorporate a ver y active learning environment
i n t o m y c l a s s r o o m . I , m ys e l f , a m a h a n d s - o n l e a r n e r a n d a b s o r b
things much easier by getting involved. I can read all day and not
c o m p r e h e n d a n yt h i n g . I c a n l i s t e n t o l e c t u r e a n d g e t l o s t i n t h e w o r d s
without being able to recall what was being said. I know that there
a r e t h r e e t yp e s o f l e a r n i n g a u d i b l e , v i s u a l , a n d k i n e s t h e t i c a n d I
i n t e n d o n i n c o r p o r a t i n g a l l t h r e e s t yl e s i n m y t e a c h i n g ; h o w e v e r, I
believe that some teachers do not include teaching methods for the
active (kinesthetic) learner as often as the other two. Because I want
t o t e a c h yo u n g e r c h i l d r e n , I t h i n k t h a t a n a c t i v e l e a r n i n g e n v i r o n m e n t
will prove successful. Children have shorter attention spans so I feel
that if I keep them involved, the y will learn more. My first teacher
t h a t I o b s e r v e d ( f r o m R u p e r t E l e m e n t a r y) u s e d a v e r y a c t i v e t e a c h i n g
technique. She had games and activities for almost every lesson.
T h i s w a s s o m e t h i n g t h a t I r e a l l y l i k e d a b o u t h e r. I n t h e k i n d e r g a r t e n
class that I observed, they did morning activities that involved all the
students getting up and exercising while spelling certain words and
c o u n t i n g . T h e y w e r e a b l e t o s p e l l t h e d a ys o f t h e w e e k a n d m o s t
colors. The y were also able to count by ones, twos, fives, and tens.
2 | Page

Jennifer Miller

Education 110

November 29, 2013

This whole routine really impressed me and I definitely want to

incorporate something like this in to m y own class when I get one.
Something else I want to incorporate into m y teaching
philosophy is the rules of Ron Clark. I think that they are brilliant. I
feel that a teachers responsibility is much more than just covering
the lessons in the books. I think that a teacher also helps build
u p s t a n d i n g m e m b e r s o f t h e i r c o m m u n i t y. T h i s i s e x a c t l y w h a t R o n
Clark was doing with those children in Harlem. Those students that he
h a d t h a t f i r s t ye a r h a d b e e n r a i s e d i n a c o m m u n i t y t h a t g a v e t h e m
little hope for a future.

His rules helped to change those childrens

outlook on life and ultimately the way their lives would turn out. He
helped them mold their lives and change their paths. I especially like
rule #3 that talks about how to congratulate a classmate, rule #4 that
speaks of showing respect to other students comments, opinions, and
i d e a s , r u l e # 5 1 ( l i v e s o t h a t yo u w i l l n e v e r h a v e r e g r e t s ) a n d r u l e # 5 5
w h i c h s o m e w h a t s u m s e v e r yt h i n g u p b y s a yi n g , b e t h e b e s t p e r s o n
you can be.
There are so many things that are needed to make a classroom
great. Some I have already learned about during this class and
t h r o u g h o b s e r v a t i o n s . O t h e r s , I w i l l p i c k u p a l o n g t h e w a y. As I s a i d
before, I want to incorporate things in to m y classroom that will make
the students want to come to school. I want an atmosphere that not

3 | Page

Jennifer Miller

Education 110

November 29, 2013

onl y helps m y students to learn but also pushes them to want to

learn. I want to change lives.

4 | Page

Jennifer Miller

Education 110

November 29, 2013

Works Cited
Wiseman, Donna L., Stephanie L. Knight and Donna D. Cooner. Becoming a Teacher
in a Field Based Setting (3rd Editon). Wadsworth, 2005.

5 | Page