Marybeth Langin ED 301 Word Count 1672 Philosophy of Education Introduction My teaching philosophy is founded upon several individual,

but complimentary, concepts. First of all, I want to always know at the end of a long day that I have worked to the best of my ability to make my students one day smarter. To sustain a positive attitude, I must believe that every student has the potential to succeed - while accepting that circumstances can dictate a students ability to fail. This practical view will drive me to always keep looking for new and better ways to teach. I will strive to develop innovative ways to teach all material. Old methodology is not always the best way. Teaching from my heart, within the framework of what is mandated, will always be my goal. I want it to be evident to my students that I care about my profession, about them, and about their educational progression. This will be a daily challenge that will also serve as a measurement of my dedication. Why should you teach? I believe I should teach because I believe that I can empathize with all kids, including those who struggle with academics. Having struggled in school while I was younger has led me to focus on the different techniques my college professors now use. I should teach because I understand that kids learn differently. I have come to realize not everyone knows this about

children. For me this is important because I am a kinesthetic learner. When I was in school lessons were geared towards visual and auditory learners. I always felt I was smart in school, I was just misunderstood. I never want another child to feel the way that I did in my elementary years. I absolutely believe that I should teach, and I know that I will be good at it. When did you decide to become a teacher? I never thought I would pursue becoming a teacher. When I was younger, I wanted things to come easy. Turning a quarter century old and not having had any substantial meaning to your life can jog ones brain. I did not realize that I wanted to be challenged, and feel the daily reward of meeting the challenge, until I was twenty-five. I spent my twenty-fifth birthday in Baghdad, Iraq as a member of the Army National Guard. The noise pollution of mortar rounds and emergency sirens had been a constant drone for six months. I came to the realization that if I get out of here I want to serve a purpose. As I toyed with the idea of teaching, I remembered how much my fifth grade teacher changed my life. That is the point that led me to decide that I wanted to teach. Jane Miller made a point every day to ask how I was doing, or pat my back. I knew that she genuinely cared about me. At that time in my life, I truly needed her positive attitude and belief in me. She is the teacher who cared enough to help me attack my struggle with language arts and do something about it. I could not help but feel warmth and comfort some eighteen years later in Baghdad when I thought about her. Jane Miller is the reason I have decided to become a teacher.

Who should teach and be taught? I will be teaching, and being taught. That is to say that I should be growing and learning as I take in everything about my students and my own teaching efforts. Remembering things learned in the processes of classroom management, individual student management, and behavioral management from year to year will enhance my ability to teach over the long haul. Issues such as behavioral difficulties and how to handle them are some one of the highest mountains for teachers to climb, and I am sure that I will make mistakes along the way. But if I remain focused on my personal development along with that of my students, I will ultimately succeed. Learning to Teach talks about the good qualities teachers should have. My favorite was good quality assessment. Good quality assessment is the main method you have of finding out how to differentiate your work, i.e. if you are going to set appropriate tasks for your pupils, you need to be constantly finding out what they know or can do. Well- Organized, differentiated, learning is founded on good assessment (Stern, 1995, 78). I liked this because teaching to all types of learners is difficult to map out because its not as if you are teaching three children in a class. Most likely, my classroom size will be anywhere from twenty-five to thirty. If this is what I am tasked with, I need to develop lesson plans that are beneficial to everyone. What should you teach? My major is elementary education with a social studies focus; I chose social studies because I am passionate about the subject. With that being said, I believe I should teach what I get excited about or what I am passionate about. As we discussed in class, it is more interesting

for a student if we can get them excited with us. Technically, I should have the ability to teach every subject since my major is elementary education. I want to teach every subject well, and I want to have the ability to make every subject fun and engaging for my students. In Teaching Goodness, we are told that A major challenge of teaching is to fulfill academic skill and requirements without making them tedious, disjointed exercises (Goodman & Balamore, 2003, 171). This is exactly what I mean by teaching passionately to engage the learners. To choose one thing I should teach would condemn me to failure because I must have the ability to teach across the broad spectrum of elementary education. I should teach everything and find a way to make it fun and exciting for myself. Teaching Goodness goes on to say that when children are excited about something, and sucked into, they retain the knowledge. If teachers can create a theme in their lessons, and go back to the excitement of the theme from previous lessons, they can keep students engaged in their classes (Goodman & Balamore, 2003, 171). How should you teach? Palmer hit the nail on the head when he wrote learn to address our students fears rather than exploit them we would move toward better teaching.(Palmer, 1998, 40). In my opinion, this is the most meaningful sentence in the book. I think that students are often afraid to answer a question if they are not one hundred percent positive it is the correct answer. When I teach, I want to teach globally. By globally, I mean teaching to the visual, auditory, and kinesthetic learners in my class. Every child has subjects or a section of class that causes them fear or anxiety. If I can observe my students, and discover their individual strengths and

weaknesses, I can help them to succeed. As an example, I could put them in groups with at least one of each type of learner. During class when I ask questions, I can have them discuss their answers and how they arrived at them. I should have remembered from my own experience that students, too, are afraid: afraid of failing, of not understanding, of being drawn into issues they would rather avoid, of having their ignorance exposed or their prejudices challenged, of looking foolish in front of their peers (Palmer, 1998, 37). My goal with this would be for them to not to be afraid individually, because they can rely on help from others without the fear of being judged if they are wrong. Obviously, this type of teaching would not work for testing or paper writing, but I remain convinced that this type of interaction would be beneficial to both. In my experience, if I have participated in a group study before a test or paper I remember the topics and conversations that were discussed in the group interaction. If I study alone and read, read, read, until my eyes pop out - I am more likely to get a worse grade then if I were to study in a group. I believe that this is not merely because I remember by interaction, but also because I prepare for the study session before I go to the group study. Because I do not yet have teaching experience, I cannot make a definitive decision on how I would teach. Every child is different, and every class dynamic is different. I am also fairly certain that my own beliefs and understanding will evolve over time. I believe that because I am already thinking about and observing different teaching techniques, I will be better prepared with options for my own teaching. Conclusion

It is impossible to believe that every student will be on the same level of learning. Education is different for every student. While I will teach to a high standard of learning, my own struggles overcoming ADHD and reading disabilities, allow me to understand that hard work can lead challenged students to be successful. I also believe had I not had teachers that cared about me, and my progression, I would not be here writing this paper. I know that I will have both the patience and endurance to help every student who is willing to accept help, and to fully challenge and embrace those who are gifted learners. I understand it is my job to prepare every student for the next level of learning, and I have no intention of failing!

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