Teaching Philosophy
Teaching is the art of assisting another person in
understanding something new.
It is the ability to take one’s personal understanding of a phenomenon,
and through interaction with another, help them to come to his or hers
own understanding of the phenomenon.
To teach is to help someone take a piece of life and place it
neatly into the mind’s puzzle, to create a clearer picture of the world.
The goal of teaching is to help students create
lasting knowledge from which they can reason and apply to future
lessons. The trick is to
prepare students for the lifelong process of learning.
Showing students how to make connections so they can carefully
place their new pieces of knowledge into the right spaces of their
life’s puzzle, so as the gaps begin to fill in, the overall picture
becomes easier to visualize.
In looking at the various philosophies and psychological influences in education, I find myself most closely aligned with a constructivist perspective. The goal of which is to have each student assimilate what they are learning into what they already know (Sadker, Sadker & Zittleman, 2008).
Each student comes to class with his or her own
knowledge of where they have been, where they are now, and where they
want to be. Time must be
spent getting to know each student, so as a teacher, I am able to use
the right approach in helping them discover how the pieces fit together.
It is important to recognize individuals do not make up a class,
but the class is made up of individuals, each with their own unique
story. I must have a bag of
tricks so deep and diverse; I can touch each student personally and
motivate them to keep learning, even when it is a struggle.
To meet the various needs of a diverse group of
students, I plan to use a variety of teaching strategies, revising and
adjusting my approach until assessments show each student understands.
I, myself, will be an example to them of a life-long learner.
Research is constantly being conducted in the area of education.
I plan to continue being a student, always striving to stay
informed of new strategies and techniques.
In order to develop a variety of approaches in my lessons, I must
have a deep and thorough understanding, not only of my content area, and
teaching techniques, but also of relationships and the culture of young
people.
As I continue to travel down this road toward teacher certification, the more I learn, the more I come to realize the tremendous impact teachers have on students’ lives. In the course of a teacher’s career, he or she has the potential to impact thousands of young people. This awesome responsibility is not to be taken lightly. I will approach my position as teacher with the utmost in humility, knowing full well, I have as much to learn from my students as they have to learn from me.
My goal each day will be to do my best, and I will expect nothing less from the students in my classes. As my Catholic faith influences so much how a think and act, I cannot coward from the opportunity to impart some knowledge of ethics and virtue to my students. If by no other means, may my example and actions reflect good judgment and character. I hope to always be a positive influence in my students’ lives.
In each class, I plan to establish a general agenda for the flow of learning, so students can become familiar and comfortable with how lessons will proceed. At the beginning of each class, I plan to use a quick puzzle or new term to get students thinking, before we actually dive into the day’s lesson. Within the lesson plan, I hope to include discussion time and applicable vocabulary words as often as possible.
Within most careers, there is a certain amount of problem solving and process improvement involve. During class I plan to incorporate age-appropriate problem solving techniques and introduce process-improvement tools. Showing students how to use certain techniques and tools as they apply to classroom topics and real-life situations, will prepare them for whatever field of study they choose.
I come to the career of teaching at midlife. I have been married for almost 18 years. I have four children between the ages of 10 and 16. I spent the past 18 years working in the corporate world. My life, so far, has been filled with many blessings and few disappointments. My strict sense of right and wrong has mellowed a bit as the pieces of my puzzle have fallen into place over the years.
I will not be a perfect teacher, but I will always
strive for perfection.
References
Sadker, D., Sadker, M., & Zittleman, K. (2008).
Teachers, Schools, and Society
(8th Ed.).