MY TEACHING PHILOSOPHY
My goal as an educator is to change the lives of my students for the better. I remember each and every one of my teachers because they have all had an impact on me throughout my schooling. My elementary school teachers helped to form a foundation for my higher educations by engaging me in learning and encouraging me to do my best and enjoy learning. In middle school my teachers helped me to further myself enough to get into higher classes and get an idea of what my goals as a student were. Most importantly, my high school teachers helped me get through the loss of my mother, all while supporting me through college applications and life decisions. That being said, my goal for the future is to be the teacher that my teachers were for me. I want to be someone who my students can rely on, trust, and form a bond with both in and out of the classroom.
To me, a successful classroom is a comfortable classroom. Something I’d like to incorporate in my classroom is the idea of collaborative learning. I felt that I have always worked best in groups, and I will definitely encourage my students to do so as well. It will not be specified group work per se, but more of a relaxed environment in which students are allowed to work amongst their peers if they desire. This relaxed environment will not only allow for students to work however they want, it will also encourage learning because of the lack of stress. I feel that students are often far too stressed when they are learning. If we can form this comfortable, stress-free environment, then students will be more successful.
The best way for students to learn is by making connections and drawing their own conclusions from the lessons taught in school. I believe that this can be done by gearing content and curriculum toward the interests of the students in my class. By doing so, my students will be able to draw connections between school and home, thereby encouraging the retention of knowledge. In my classroom, I will incorporate these techniques frequently – as for how I will incorporate it, I will encourage the use of technology in learning or in the classroom. Technology is growing at a rapid pace and is something that children these days are absolutely fascinated by. I am a firm believer that technology in the classroom is beneficial, so that is an important aspect of my own personal teaching philosophy.
Each teacher (future teachers included) should form their own teaching philosophy. I have linked a slideshow that walks through the steps to forming a successful teaching philosophy. It was created by Danielle Mihram, Director at the Center for Excellence in Teaching at the University of South California. She does a wonderful job explaining why we need teaching philosophies and how to make your own. Please leave comments in the feedback section on how to improve my teaching philosophy, or with links to your own as I’d love to read them!
Madelyn Owens 