Elizabeth Troup

12/06/2018

Philosophy of Education

In the past three and a half years I’ve been studying, I’ve learned quite a bit on many

different ways of teaching. I’ve learned about various strategies in teaching different subjects as

well as behavior management strategies. Hopefully soon, I will be implementing those strategies

into my own classroom. However, something that stands above all these sorts of strategies is

that a teacher must care for their students. A teacher needs to recognize the dignity of each and

every student and to treat them with love and respect, no matter what.

One important factor a teacher must take into consideration is the development of their

students. Depending on the grade level, the students are in all sorts of stages of development.

Teachers must take this into consideration when they are educating their students. Piaget

believed in four stages of cognitive development: sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete

operational, and formal operational. As a teacher of elementary students, my students should be

in either the preoperational or concrete operational stage. Children in the preoperational stage

are from ages 2-7, and one aspect of this stage is believing that everyone sees the world the same

as they do. Even if someone sees it from another perspective, they will still think they can see it

from their own perspective. The concrete operational stage occurs for children who are ages 7-

11. At this stage, children have developed the concept of conservation. They understand that by

cutting a pizza into many pieces there is the same amount as there was before even if there are

more pieces. This is a concept that children in the preoperational stage have not yet grasped. I

will have to understand what their brains can comprehend at this developmental stage and take

that into consideration with the way I teach them.

 Teachers must also keep in mind the different learning theories and be able to relate that

to their teaching. One theorist that I will keep in mind in my future teaching is that of Vygotsky.

He believed that the teacher must teach their students within their zone of proximal development

(ZPD) in order for learning to occur. I will also integrate scaffolding, which Vygotsky also

talked about in his learning theory. With scaffolding, the teacher provides a significant level of

support for the learner when they initially introduce a new topic. After using modeling, praise,

and other supports, the teacher gradually releases the scaffolding until the student can perform

independently without them. One example of a scaffold would be adding with a number line. If

I have a student who struggles adding on their own, I can provide a number line and then

gradually fade it until the student can add without it. Scaffolding can also be a form of

differentiating instruction, since not all students are on the same learning level. Some students

may need certain scaffolds while others may not. Vygotsky was also a constructivist. He

believed that students learn from discussing with others. In my classroom, I think it’s important

for students to discuss with each other because by being able to explain a concept to others,

students can better understand it and help each other understand it. I will do this through various

kinds of formative assessments such as Think-Pair-Share (TPS). I will implement many

opportunities for students to not just discuss but also work together during class activities, such

as partner reading. Growing up, I had little to no interaction with peers in my traditional

classroom, and I think that there is definitely a time and place for peer interaction in order to

facilitate learning, so I would like to incorporate that into my future classroom.

In terms of classroom arrangement, I would like to provide for my students a positive

environment that promotes learning. I will have to take into consideration my students’ needs

and follow it accordingly. In my classroom, I will designate a place for direct instruction, where
most of the learning will take place. I will arrange the desks in table groups of four, however I

will ensure that all the students are facing the front of the room because having to turn around in

one’s seat is uncomfortable and distracting. I will have decorations in my classroom, visual

schedules, and lists (depending on what grade I’m teaching) that correlates to what the students

are learning. I would like to incorporate a word wall and have opportunities for students to

interact with it regularly. I will also have a “calm down corner” incorporating sensory items for

students who get overstimulated or any students who feel the need to collect themselves when

overwhelmed. There will also be a space designated for circle time in which read-alouds will

occur. I will also incorporate a TEAACH station for students who need to work individually,

and it works especially well for students with autism. In order for students to transition to the

next place such as lunch or another class, I will include a “wait line” near the entrance of the

door sot that students will know exactly where they need to stand. Classroom arrangement is

key when it comes to teaching, for classroom environment can sometimes make all the

difference in a student’s educational experience.

In order to teach an effective lesson, there must first be a plan. This plan must involve

several components. Additionally, that plan must be properly executed. From my experience

with the different teaching styles I’ve learned about, I am someone who definitely leans towards

direct instruction. In direct instruction, the teacher directly “feeds” information to the students.

The teacher also states the set of objectives in the lesson and clearly defines those objectives.

The beginning of a direct instruction lesson aims to grab students’ attention, so I would be sure

to open my lesson in such a way that orients my students to learn. By clearly communicating my

objectives for the lesson, both I and my students will know what it is they need to learn and why

they need to learn it. That way, the entire class will be on the same page and there won’t be any
confusion in regards to the learning outcomes. While teaching, it is important to conduct

learning probes. I will be sure to ask plenty of questions to the students so that they will remain

engaged in the lesson. Another way to word this would be to provide plenty of opportunities to

respond (OTRs). By keeping the students constantly engaged, they won’t start getting distracted

because it won’t be me talking to them the whole time, but instead it will be more of a back and

forth as I ask questions and they respond. I will also implement all kinds of formative

assessments. Of course, the OTRs count as some of the informal formative assessments. My

lessons will follow a “before, during, and after”, and in those sections I will implement an “I do,

We do, You do” format. I will make sure I start the lesson by explaining and modeling to the

students what it is they will be learning. After that, I will do an example with them so that I can

guide them and ensure they are grasping the material. After the students understand, they will

have an opportunity to do it on their own in independent practice. I will also be sure to

implement small group and whole class discussions.

In regards to classroom management, the most important thing to keep in mind is

discipline with dignity. We never know what our students can be going through at home, so we

have to be patient with them and remember that they are individuals worthy of respect and love.

Treating students with dignity means that regardless of the circumstance, students are treated

with patience, respect, and empathy. When teachers reprimand students by speaking to them in

an impatient manner, the students’ inappropriate behavior is not likely to change. When

students’ dignity is recognized, teachers can find more creative, empathetic manners of

discipline. For my philosophy on classroom management, I want to make my classroom a

positive atmosphere. In a couple different schools I’ve been in, I’ve heard teachers yell at the

students. It breaks my heart because yelling doesn’t help and I know that it will only affect the
children even more negatively. Instead, I want to try various forms of motivation and

reinforcement. I will provide many opportunities for rewards for good behavior, specifically I

will use positive reinforcement in my classroom. Students will know that if they behave on-task,

they will be rewarded. I will also use plenty of behavior specific praise, which is an intervention

I’ve already been working on with students I’m tutoring. Behavior specific praise isn’t just

“good job” but telling the student exactly what it is that they are doing well. It encourages

students to continue that good behavior because I am verbally reinforcing that behavior. For

example, if a student is sitting nicely in his seat with his pencil in his hand, I would tell him “I

love the way you’re sitting in your seat with your pencil in your hand!” I am telling that student

exactly what he’s doing that I like, and since that behavior is reinforced, he will continue that in

the future. I will also effectively implement the “time-out” intervention. I will only use it when

a student is being taken away from a pleasant activity and that this does not let them escape from

the work they were supposed to do.

Not all students learn the same way, so I need to keep in mind that I will have to

individualize my instruction. I will individualize my instruction by adding the necessary

modifications and accommodations for my students. I can individualize instruction by peer

tutoring any struggling students. I can also use various kinds of grouping. For instance, in

reading class I can organize partner reading according to the “higher” and “lower” readers.

Those who are on a higher reading level can be a mentor for their partners who struggle to read.

Another way I can individualize instruction is through the 3-tiered intervention system.

Everyone receives tier-1 intervention which is high quality teaching for all the students. Tier 2

intervention is for small groups of students who are not responding to the first tier, so they

receive extra interventions, such as extra help in a particular subject or in all the subjects. Tier 3
is for individual students who did not respond to the tier 2 intervention. This tier can be the

beginning of the referral process for special education. I would also like to teach according to

how my students learn best. I will be prepared for multiple kinds of explanations and strategies

for students who may not understand the standard approach. I will also keep in mind the

multiple intelligences, as some students are visual learners, others auditory, kinesthetic,

linguistic, and more. I will try to cater to all these learning styles as I teach so I will incorporate

all of these intelligences to my teaching. I will do my best to meet all my students’ needs when I

teach each lesson. By planning each lesson, I will be able to plan the proper accommodations

and modifications for my students. This will be especially prevalent if I am teaching an

inclusive classroom.

As a teacher, it is important to reflect on how one is going to educate his or her students.

I believe that there are many different approaches to teaching, and they have their own individual

strengths. I believe that drawing from the knowledge of different theorists and teaching

knowledge will aid me in my own classroom one day. It is also crucial to effectively manage a

classroom while at the same time being cognizant of the dignity of one’s students.

Individualizing instruction is another important factor to consider when teaching. An effective

teacher is someone who really and truly cares about their students, and that’s the kind of teacher

I want to be. I won’t know what kind of home situations my students are coming from, so I want

to be able to be someone that they look forward to seeing every day instead of someone they

dread to see.