Philosophy of Teaching

            It is essential to have a flexible set of beliefs upon which one’s teaching practice is founded.  My attitude as a teacher, the material I choose to teach, concepts, and even the atmosphere of the classroom should all center on this philosophy.  My success in the classroom will be directly affected by the goals and attitudes that I as a teacher possess. 

I believe every student has the ability to learn, and the teacher’s responsibility is to make a lesson approachable so that a desire will be sparked within each student to gain knowledge of the material.  Every student should be taught the importance of making learning personal, and also the importance of becoming a lifelong learner.  If an individual is not learning they are not growing as a person, and I desire to influence students to never cease growing in their knowledge.  Students must be encouraged to learn to think for themselves and not always be dependant on a teacher to prompt their learning.  I desire to empower students with this ability to develop their own thoughts, ideas, and beliefs in whatever area they are interested in.

            I believe that every student should feel respected in my classroom. Students should enter a classroom feeling the respected.  As a teacher I should provide the same level of respect to the students that I expect for myself. It is important to make an effort to discover where the student is coming from and to take into account the impressions that have molded this student’s personality.  I cannot be an effective teacher if I do not try to understand my students.  Understanding my students and where they are coming from will be indispensable when it comes to making lessons applicable to each individual student, and I will have to discover the techniques that best fit my student’s learning personalities.  I will use every technique I know to empower a student to learn, but ultimately the choice to learn is placed within the student’s hands. 

            I believe that while it is the teacher’s responsibility to develop a technique that will encourage all students to learn, it is ultimately the student’s responsibility to make what they learn their own knowledge.  It is important for every student to question all new knowledge as they are exposed to it.  If they are going to believe what they are taught, they must too discover why they believe it.  A student will not remember many years down the road what one certain teacher taught them unless they make the material their own.  Students must be forced to discover answers for themselves.  Here is a quote from a fellow teacher that I find to be quite reliable:

Knowing an answer is NOT the most important thing...Knowing HOW to arrive at an answer is the most important thing.  Tell me the answer and I will never remember it.  Let me discover the answer for myself and I will never forget it.

Learning may sometimes need to be frustrating in order for a student to fully grasp a concept.  Frustration can be a good motivator to encourage a student to figure out an answer.  My responsibility as the teacher is to not allow the frustration to hinder the learning process, but to intercede in the essential time frame of valid frustration, and hurtful frustration that shuts the mind off. 

             It is also important to integrate technology into whatever being taught to enhance the student’s ability to be successful in today’s society.  We have become a technology dependant society, and if a student is ignorant in how to use these ever-changing enhancements another more knowledgeable student will bypass this student on the ladder of success.  Technology has the ability to relate to all students at every level because it is so vast in scope.  With digital cameras, scanners, the Internet, and PowerPoint, for instance, each student can use his or her own creativity, learning style, and individual interests to express their thought and ideas. 

            In everything I bring into the classroom, rather by requirement or by choice, I will first develop a passion for why this material is relevant, because without a personal passion I do not believe that I can expect my students to be impassioned about a particular issue.  An individual is disciplined in areas that he or she is passionate about, and I hope to develop students who are passionate about learning and in turn passionate about life.