Philosophy of Education

Schools have a multifaceted purpose that should grow with the student as they progress.

Holistically, school should provide students the ability to grow both academically and socially in

preparation for their future personal and professional lives. The purpose of school is more than

simply teaching content; teaching critical thinking, academic and emotional independence, and

functioning effectively in a cooperative setting are also school’s responsibilities.

Since learning is an integral part of school, it’s important to understand exactly what

learning means. Learning is a process in which information is acquired and understood and then

able to be used again. All students are capable of learning, although each student will progress in

a different way. As a teacher, I cannot judge each of my students’ learning in comparison to the

others. They all should, however, be able to take the information that is presented to them—

whether it is academic content or something less tangible, like a responsibility or a mindset—and

use it in a new way. For example, students who are taught about different character archetypes in

literature should be able to then identify and explain where they see them in other works of

media.

A healthy and open learning environment plays a key role in the ability of students to

learn effectively. It is my goal to make my classroom inclusive and open to any and all students

who come through my door. As much as my students will learn from me, I want to learn from

them as well, and hope that they can learn from each other. Students need to feel safe and

respected in the classroom so that they can learn and express themselves unobstructed. The

classroom environment should never be a barricade to a student’s education.

In order to create this positive learning environment, it should be clear from the

beginning what is appropriate in the classroom, as well as what types of behaviors and language
will not be tolerated. No student should feel judged or singled out. I intend to help my students

build positive relationships with each other, so that they are able to comfortably share their

thoughts and viewpoints without fear of ridicule or harassment. By being open with my students

and encouraging them to teach me about things that I do not know, I hope to inspire my students

to be as willing to learn from each other.

Each student is a unique individual whose ways of learning and understanding are not the

same as any of their peers. By being aware of my students’ needs, whether it is a specific

accommodation or simply a preference that I learn through observation, I can better plan and

create lessons and assessments to effectively help my students. For example, I have worked with

students where, in one class, I had five students who all read effectively in different ways. One

student retained and understood more when reading alone, another did best when reading with an

adult, and the others preferred to read out loud, some in groups, and some independently. It is

important as a teacher to recognize where each student’s abilities lie and to tailor the material

accordingly. They may all be doing the same work, but ensuring that each student can complete

it effectively often means altering the presentation so that each student can succeed.

Students are motivated to learn when they are engaged in the material and eager to

discover more. To develop this kind of classroom environment, it is important to connect the

material to the students’ lives, especially when it involves abstract concepts that they may not

otherwise encounter. When students can see how a concept would work in their life, it becomes

much easier to understand and engage with. Another method that I value as a teacher is hands-on

learning. If students can physically engage with something or create something new, that creates

a new connection to the material that they can make themselves. For younger students, this may

involve using shapes or blocks in math to visually represent equations and solve problems. For
more upper level content, such as learning different types of government in a history class, a

hands-on project could involve the students creating their own country and deciding how it

should be governed, with evidence to back up their choice.

As a teacher, I want my students to learn and be able to apply the content that I teach

them, but quality curriculum goes beyond the material that I teach. The part of curriculum that is

content should be unbiased, in-depth, and expansive. Hand in hand with the content should be

the desire to learn more and to dig deeper into topics of interest. However, quality curriculum

should also include an appreciation of knowledge, higher order thinking such as analysis and

application, well-rounded study habits, and other classroom and life-long skills that can be

learned through learning. Those intrinsic things learned in a classroom may not ever find

themselves posted on the syllabus, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t important.