My Teaching Philosophy

EN 2503
19 November 2012
My Teaching Philosophy Education is such a vital role in keeping society moving. The importance of education is different for every person. Some people want to have the absolute best education they can so they can get great jobs and make a lot of money; however, others are striving to be the first in their family to achieve a higher education. These are on two opposite ends of the spectrum, but either way, education is still important. As a future educator, the goals of education for me are to make learning fun, give students love and support, but most of all make a difference. When I become a teacher, I will be that teacher that invests her life into her job and her students. Becoming a teacher has not been my only career choice; however, it has been my choice for the longest. When I was in kindergarten we had Career Day at school, and we were told to dress like who we wanted to be when we got older. I wore a plaid skirt with black shoes and had red rimmed glasses and called myself a teacher. Although there have been times when being a teacher was not what I wanted to be due to the fact that they do not make much money, my senior year of high school I decided to give in completely to my passion and realized that enjoying your job is more important that the amount of money you make. I have always loved children and every chance I had in high school, I would visit my mom’s kindergarten class and help with whatever I could. I have worked Vacation Bible Schools every summer, and I love being able to put information on a child’s level and helping them understand different things. Children fascinate me with how their mind works and how it soaks up information like a sponge. I want to be able to witness the “light bulb” go off in their brains when they grasp what is being taught. It is an amazing feeling to see positive results in children that I have had a hand in. Growing up I had wonderful elementary school teachers that made huge impacts in my life, and I want to be like that. Many children do not have positive influences in their lives and do not receive the love children need while growing up. I want to be that person that can make a difference and show them they are loved and are important. To become a teacher that makes a difference in her students’ lives, I believe I will need to have a somewhat flexible teaching style. Every student is different; therefore every class will be different as well. When I have a classroom of my own, I would like to have an interactive learning style that easily targets the different methods of learning children have. As future educators we have to realize that each student learns in a different way, and we have to be willing to put in the extra time to provide the resources that is best for each student. I also believe that to be an effective teacher, we have to give individualized attention to each student in our classroom. This is a key factor in assessing the student and figuring out his or her strengths and weaknesses. Often times in a classroom, students can be divided into three groups: high achieving, middle level, and lower achieving. Yes, every student needs time spent with them, but I believe that if it is possible, the lower level group needs to receive extra attention to shorten the learning gap and catch them up with the other students. I want to be the teacher that invests her life into her students’ lives; therefore, I will be more than willing to provide after school study sessions for students. We as teachers have to make learning fun and go above and beyond to reach out to our students. I feel that being a quality teacher is not just about how I will teach, but it is also about how I will build relationships with my students. I believe that consistency is one of the key factors in building a good teacher/student relationship. A teacher must do what he or she says he or she is going to do. Children remember everything it seems like and for that reason, teachers cannot say one thing then do another. Also to build good relationships with my students, I will need to give the appropriate responses to different behaviors. For example, when a child—who is usually a problem child—has good behavior, I will need to let the child know that I noticed his or hers good behavior. On the opposite end of the spectrum, when a child acts badly, I will need to get on to him or her and let he or she know that I expect more of them. Being consistent with how I act towards my students will allow my students to form a trust for me because they will know what to expect. With this trust, hopefully they will be willing to open up to me and be receptive to my teaching. Not only are good relationships with students important, but good relationships with fellow teachers and administrators are equally important. The most important thing for a school system is to provide a positive learning environment for its students. I feel for this to be able to take place, teachers and administrators must all be on the same page. Although it will be hard to not think that my method of teaching is the best, I must be open to other ideas and not criticize the other methods of teaching. With so many different methods of learning, I will have to have an open mind to new approaches when it comes to presenting the teaching material. I, along with the other teachers, will need to be willing to work together and openly share ideas. We must also all do our job! Slacking on responsibility is a very quick way to have my fellow colleagues angry with me. As far as administrators go, I must do what they say because they will be my boss. However, if I disagree with something they may be doing, I have to be tactful with my opinion while showing respect. By working together with colleagues, a positive environment will be available for students to learn. Education is the basis of society, and how well the students of today are educated will determine how well the world is run tomorrow. We will be educating the future of America and even the world. As future educators, we need to realize that teaching is not going to be easy, but it is going to be a very rewarding job. I want to be a difference maker and a person that devotes extra time to better her students.