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Personal Philosophy of Education
Students are in school not to listen, but to learn. Even through mixed emotions and criticism that encircle the beliefs of many that, our current public education system is broken. I still believe in the profession of being a teacher. Will I make the difference that my students deserve to receive the best education possible? For me, there is no other option, nor do I want one. My philosophy is simple, and that is to move forward with what I have learned and apply that knowledge in the classroom environment. Every day will present a new challenge, but I honestly believe that I am a good fit and welcome the opportunity to make a genuine difference in my students’ lives. I am a lifelong learner and incorporating with what I have learned will allow me to push my students and myself to their full potential.
The brain is all its magnificent glory has the magnitude to learn anything. Since my goal is to be a future educator, my job will be to recognize and understand the learning process of my students. However, factors such as environment, learning styles, experiences, and social and cognitive levels can affect learning in different ways. Being committed and understanding a student’s emotional and educational needs are crucial to their success. By developing strong student-teacher relationships, clear communication, and being consistent with providing structure to their environment will foster a positive atmosphere for learning. I feel that learning theories from the past still apply in today’s schools and students work well in environments that support their learning needs. Such as the theory of Constructivism to understand that, students learn by incorporating their own experiences and prior knowledge to link new learning. The key is to keep their minds active and engaged in everything they are learning by giving them each a reason and purpose to learn. Understanding students have different
learning modalities I should provide a sensory rich environment to encompass their learning styles, which is based on the Cognitivism theory. My role will be to bring meaning and makes a connection to their learning. Since education has reached a new, it is no longer a teachercentered, but student-centered especially with the help of technology. Most information is available at the student’s fingertips, and self-directed learning is the new norm. Teachers are no longer standing in front of a classroom, giving information to learn, but they are now facilitators for their students on how to obtain the information needed to learn. I want to guide and inspire my students to take ownership of their learning.
What I already know about my future learners is that each one is unique and comes to school with their own experiences, interest, learning styles, and backgrounds. My role and objective is to understand that with each element of uniqueness that my student’s exhibit my job is to teach and create active learners. Beginning with getting to know my students and knowing them well is the first step. Learning about their interest, experiences, and backgrounds to form meaningful relationships so that they know I truly care and am here for them daily. It is important for me to focus and to understand what makes them tick and know what causes them to shut down. Being aware of factors outside of school that may affect their learning, being conscientious, and making a concrete effort to show them that no matter what they can and will succeed. Ideally helping them to set realistic, obtainable goals in order to promote growth and learning for all. Providing individual learning opportunities and practice with helpful, constructive, and useful feedback is essential. With each student’s uniqueness, that they bring to class each day will be my opportunity to make a difference in their lives. Mine as well as we set our mindset for nothing more than to grow and improve as learners together.
As we learn together, I understand that my job is never done at the end of the day when the students go home. Teaching comes with many roles, and there is no single aspect of teaching that is more important than another is. My goal is to find the balance that works well for everyone and knowing that what worked one day may not the next. The lessons I know should never come straight from a book, but from a pure dedication, thoughtful planning, and preparation to meet the student’s individual needs. I plan to plan lessons well and over plan leaving room to differentiate or modify any lesson when need be. I believe there is always a teachable moment and by keeping the students engaged the moment they walk in the classroom to the time they leave is essential to their learning. I will need to keep my students excited and curious for that is how they learn. When students believe and witness a personal connection, know why they are learning and are inspired to work together to be successful then active and productive learning will occur. I will set clear expectations, and my focus will always remain the same, with the students. I will question, listen, and pay attention to the students for they will tell me what I need to know. They will help guide the daily decisions that I make to make sure I provide the best instruction possible for their individual needs. Knowing instruction is never a one-size fit all, but a vigilant effort of pursuing nothing but excellence and providing the very best for my students.
Assessments are ongoing. I recognize that assessments are done before, during and after learning. Consistent, positive, and constructive feedback will serve as a valuable guide for my students. There are three basic types of assessments, which are diagnostic, formative, and summative. Diagnostic is the pre-assessment done before learning and is crucial to my understanding of my student’s prior knowledge. Formative assessments I will use during the students learning and vary it in forms or methods. They are used to gauge or monitor students’ understanding of the material they are learning. Using formative assessment allows me to identify the student’s strengths/weakness and improve on areas of need. Formative assessment also gives me a clear indication of what is not working in instruction and what I will need to change at the moment or for the next lesson. Summative assessments are used after learning to evaluate student learning by testing their knowledge. These assessments are usually done at the end of a lesson, unit, semester, or school year. I will use this information from these assessments to drive instruction and differentiate material when needed to improve my teaching methods and student learning. Assessments must be aligned with the state standards as well what is being taught to the students in the classroom. By using, a backward design in planning assessments will align with what I have taught the students. As I said assessments equals feedback. The information received back from any form of assessment must be reviewed, studied, and analyzed. Clear and informed decision-making are to be made to provide the necessary feedback for my students. A balanced approach to improving learning is only accomplished through self- reflection, team meetings, district, and statewide data meetings and by taking each step necessary to progress forward in my students learning.
Regardless of where I teach there are policies in place to ensure that students receive the best education possible. A very well know policy in place is the federal policy known as No Child Left Behind (NCLB). One part of this policy was to ensure that teachers are held accountable for student success. There are also state, district, and county policies that help govern how schools operate and I understand this is how the education system operates which is one big piece of the overall picture. I welcome the changes that have occurred in education.
By recognizing, that children do learn in different ways and that those learning needs were not being met. These open the opportunity for other options besides public school. Such as Charter schools, private schools, academies, virtual schools, and homeschooling. I also understand that we live and teach in a technology driven society. Our classrooms are full of diversity and vision. How I decide to teach, improve learning, and take an actual stance on making a difference in my classroom, school and community will affect the future of my students.
Will I make the difference I so desire? My belief is that as long as I give my students a purpose to learn, an environment that is welcoming, students will feel safe and will want to learn. I am human and so are they, we all make mistakes, and we can all learn from each other. I know, despite their own beliefs, they are capable of learning, and I will support their needs. I want to succeed as a whole and learn each day right along with them. Every day will present a new challenge. Every year will vary from the next. Finding a balance, being flexible, loving what I do, patience, a bit of humor, enjoying the uniqueness that each student will bring and building relationships based on respect and trust is my goal.
