My philosophy on teaching has been shaped by the many experiences I have had throughout my educational journey and will continue to transform as I experience and learn more in the educational field. My teaching philosophy stems from my practices in general and special education classrooms and relates to teaching students the way in which they learn best. Lastly, my philosophy embraces the important role of collaboration and communication to stay current in the education world.

 

THE ROLE OF THE TEACHER: I believe the roles and responsibilities of a teacher are ever changing due to the fact that all students are unique. It is a teacher’s job to adapt materials and the environment to best meet the needs of all students. Adapting material, or differentiating is a skill a teacher must adapt to align material to students different needs. A teacher is also a learner who needs to reflect upon teaching successes and failures from students and professionals to guide future instruction that is more effective. Additionally, a teacher must collaborate and communicate with peers, colleagues, and other outside professionals to network and grow as a professional.

 

THE ROLE OF THE STUDENT: In a classroom, a student’s role is to discover learning and the power of knowledge. I believe teaching that is focused toward the student, supports a learning experience that is impactful and purposeful. This can be accomplished when the teacher has personal knowledge of each student, including their background knowledge and experiences they bring to the class. The goal is to create materials that are customized to build on prior knowledge to achieve high interest. Scaffolding learning by building new information onto existing knowledge will foster connections that will create new understanding.  

      

THE ROLE OF TECHNOLOGY:  The use of technology in the classroom needs to be purposeful when used in lessons and other projects. The application of technology must enhance the educational content knowledge and also the pedagogical content knowledge. The use of technology should enhance a lesson and create an experience for students that is engaging and informative. Through the use of technology in education students will aid in developing a student's digital citizenship.

 

CLASSROOM CONTENT: Students have varying learning abilities and the way in which they access learning that needs to be supported. I believe that differentiating instruction creates learning opportunities that are effective for all students. Differentiated instruction is a way to teach how the student learns by using supports, modifications, and adaptations to conform the material to the student. The teacher can differentiate instruction with planned small groups, peer to peer work, hands on materials, journals, audio recordings, outlines/webs, tablets, and computers.  

 

CLASSROOM ATMOSPHERE: I believe an essential aspect to a classroom is creating a classroom culture that is inviting, inspiring, and comforting to allow for sharing, learning, and growth to take place. A classroom that possesses these elements is a welcoming place where individuals feel comfortable and relationships can be formed between students, teacher, and parents and families. A functional classroom environment is one that students are knowledgeable of where to access material without teacher support. It is important to provide a classroom that has structure, yet allows flexibility for the students to work in a setting most comfortable to them.

 

TEACHING AS A PROFESSION: I believe a teacher makes the commitment to be a lifelong learner and leads by example by showing curiosity and enthusiasm about the subject matter to motivate students to learn. A teacher must also model for students the power of learning from failure and embrace the fail forward mindset. Being a lifelong learning means constantly reading, connecting, and communicating with resources both in and out of the education world. The goal of education is to develop lifelong learners that question their surroundings and seek for answers.