My Personal Philosophy
A teacher’s personal philosophy of education is a critical element in his or her approach to guiding children along the path of enlightenment. ~ Barbara Wilt Opportunity abounds for elementary education in the twenty-first century, given the multitude of academic theorists who pioneered a number of indispensable approaches. The extent to which elementary education must be tailored to a combination of one’s cultural and social environment is both grand and far-reaching; that no single teaching method can purport to reach each and every child speaks to the need for incorporating the benefits of more than one approach in any given classroom environment. My lifelong desire is to teach all levels at some point in my career. To me, teaching has no age limits, as we all need to learn and grow. In the beginning I would always focus on early childhood education because I felt that this stage in life was the most important due to the developing growth of the brain. But this course has definitely given me a better outlook on education in its entirety. To better understand one’s philosophy of education, one must first understand the meaning of philosophy itself. Philosophy is the “love of wisdom and the search for it” (Webb, Metha, & Jordan, 2010, pg. 50). I adapted to my personal philosophy by recognizing educational principles that rests upon the learner, the school, and myself as the teacher. In this essay I will explain the purpose of education, examine the educational philosophy that matches my belief, show the roles of the student as well as the teacher, and discuss my ideal curriculum. Education is a means of reaching out to individuals and instilling them with the love of learning. It is striving to delight excitement in the minds of students, by making their learning experience both fun and engaging. This enthusiasm about learning will drive students to develop an intellectual curiosity and to become lifelong