Teaching Philosophy

I believe that education is not only about learning skills and acquiring knowledge that will help you in life, but understanding the significance of why you are learning. Part of it is grasping the true meaning and effect that an education has on your life and how magical and exciting the process could be. This is not something that can be simply told to a young student, it’s something that has to be conveyed on a deeper level. It has to be ingrained in the student’s belief system and they must believe in their hearts that the rewards of a good education are real and infinite. When students understand this, their motivation is increased and they will bring more of their energy to the table. A very important way to demonstrate this to the students is to develop the curriculum around things that interest the students outside of school. This makes the material relevant to them and fosters intrinsic motivation.

How else do I plan on reaching students at their core level? By understanding them. According to Vygotsky’s learning model of Social Cognition, A child develops their knowledge and their means of thinking in the context of their culture. In order to understand how children think, it’s important to understand as much as possible about their cultural backgrounds. When I studied and worked in advertising, a huge emphasis was put on doing research and getting to know the target audience. Much was done to try and understand what it means to walk in some one else’s shoes and see the world through their eyes in order to “speak their language” and communicate to them in the most effective way. I think the same applies to teaching.

I envision the education process as a student being surrounded by a circular wall. On this wall there are various doors, all locked except one. We, as teachers, must take the knowledge that we want to share and find the right door—the unlocked one—in order to enter and meet the student with the knowledge. We simply cannot just leave it at the foot of one of the unlocked doors. They will have it for a while, but will not retain it. To find the right door it helps to understand Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences. I believe that students are unique, and so their learning styles are unique. I believe that in order to maximize the understanding of a particular class, the material needs to be presented in a variety of ways. In order to assess the most effective ways for a particular class or a student to learn, the lines of communication in the classroom must be open and actively engaged by both the students and the teachers. This is easiest when the atmosphere in the classroom is one that is safe, secure, and respectful, but also stimulating and one where risk-taking is encouraged. Classroom management, therefore, is extremely important and should be established early in the school year.

Cooperative Learning is one of the most important teaching strategies an educator can use. It teaches students how to work together, how to communicate with each other, and it also teaches them how to work through conflicts that arise out of working together. Learning to work as part of a team is a crucial skill that is needed in just about all types of careers. Ironically, cooperative learning teaches students to work independently as well, and I believe that there are many times in the educational process where students should direct themselves while the teacher steps back and acts as a guide.

I believe my role, as an educator, is to never stop being a student. I should forever be passionate about life, people, culture, and mainly, the art of communication. And I should strive and continue to learn about international cultures, contemporary educational practices, the youth culture, media trends, technology and the students that are entrusted to us daily. As teachers, our growing experience and expanding knowledge are our best tools when it comes to teaching our diverse students, as well as our willingness to be flexible and open to the changing environment.