Running head: STATEMENT OF INFORMED BELIEFS

Statement of Informed Beliefs

Marissa Messmer
Dr. Evin Fox
EDUC 204
Spring 2016

STATEMENT OF INFORMED BELIEFS

Statement of Informed Beliefs

Introduction
My journey to become a teacher has been a somewhat messy and confusing path, but I
wouldnt want it any other way. I feel this is the best way to learn about myself and my world; to
get messy and caught up in it and to explore. I can thank my middle school English teacher Ms.
Strunk for me wanting to become a teacher. She related her lessons and activities to everyday life
and made them relevant, she was always kind and always there for her students. I narrowed my
career choices down and knew that I wanted to do something where I can help people grow into
even better versions of themselves. It finally made sense to me that teaching was a perfect fit to
this description. Growing up I admired teachers and what they did for kids and their schools, I
now want to take accountability and teach children in a classroom and have the role as a teacher.
I want to inspire children like all my teachers have done for me, and help them become better,
more intelligent, and passionate people in society.
There is no such thing as one learning style that works for all children. Each child has
their own personal and special way of learning and not one is really right or wrong. Factors such
as disabilities, handicaps, race, or even cultural barriers could hinder a childs performance in
school and ability to learn. I believe it is my job as the teacher to find a rhythm that will work in
my classroom that fosters to the education and learning of all the students in my class. It is my
job to learn the way my students learn and what does work and what doesnt and go from there,
and to build a classroom where learning is fun and personalized for each individual student.
Students Ability to Learn
One of the most important things to me is building a classroom where my students will
feel safe and want to learn. I want them to feel welcome and not afraid to express themselves. I
want to build their confidence and never neglect them. I want my classroom to feel like a home
away from home to my students and have a strong ecology. After this is established I will have
set of norms or rules that my classroom will run off of, my students will know what to do and

STATEMENT OF INFORMED BELIEFS

what consequences follow their actions. I want my students to know what to do without having
to ask questions. I want my students to learn with guidance of the teacher and be where they are
doing most of the learning and work.
Incorporating both teacher and student-directed curriculum into a classroom can be
very beneficial. Students will benefit more if they are sometimes incorporated into what they are
learning. With myself being the teacher, I need to have a foundation and find out what my
students know first and incorporate teacher-directed curriculum from there. The curriculum
must be developmentally appropriate for each student and be at the level the student is at in order
for them to improve. This way they are able to accomplish a developmental task, and be able to
move on from there.
For students to succeed they must set goals for themselves and stay organized. It is the
job of the teacher to structure this for the students and to assist them in the learning process. It is
the students responsibility to learn, and to want to learn. There is only so much a teacher can do
to make the students want to learn, education is a two man job. Students should have many
responsibilities in the classroom that make them feel involved and also in charge of their
education. Students should have a say on what goes on and how they learn.
Students Social Ecology Theory
I have always learned best in school when things are relevant to me and I can make sense
of what I am learning. Connecting learning to childrens social ecology will benefit them greatly.
Being a teacher it is important to be involved with students parents and communicate
with them. I want to know what kind of home my students come from and how involved their
families are. This way I can adapt my teaching style and what I do in my classroom to
accommodate this. For example, some childrens parents might be very involved in their
education and get a lot of help at home while other students struggle more and dont really get
the extra help at home. Also students that have family problems may have behavior or attitude
problems and may need a little extra attention. I hope to provide guidance to allow all my

STATEMENT OF INFORMED BELIEFS

students to grow and help them learn despite their situation at home. I will incorporate my
families morals and values into my classroom. I want my students to be hard workers, be
passionate, loving, responsible and just overall better individuals.
I will always try to make my students feel included and part of the group in everything I
do. Sometimes this may be hard when a student may feel out of place maybe because of their
culture, race, socioeconomic status, or development. I want to educate my students of these
things and make them accepting and more loving individuals.
A childs learning can be impacted by many things like how the child is brought up,
where the child comes from, and the way their family does things. All of these are part of their
macro and micro systems. These influence children greatly and effect the way they learn. It is
my job as the teacher to make the content I teach in the classroom relevant to the students and
make learning enjoyable. A well-known theorist Jean Piaget, has shown that children learn by
first incorporating and connecting the information to things they already know (Berns 2016, p.
19). Being an elementary teacher it is especially important to relate things to students so they are
able to grasp onto information.
Discrimination and Learning
Every child is entitled to the best education possible no matter their circumstances. As a
teacher I will stay aware and educate myself on my students pasts, culture, and their family and
lifestyle. I will always try to stay open minded and non-judging. I believe every student should
be welcomed into a classroom with open arms and a great learning environment. Realizing that
everyone is different and no one is the same, is the key to a wonderful classroom. I will educate
my students on this and we will learn about all different cultures and difference between all
people in the world. I will teach about different cultures and ethnicities in the classroom and
honor these lessons and people.

STATEMENT OF INFORMED BELIEFS

Every child is different and I feel that it is my job to educate my students that is okay. It
doesnt matter your race, ethnicity, religion, disability, everyone is unique in their own way and
we should value and embrace each other to become more educated people. It is the job of the
teacher to demonstrate a mutual acceptance and understanding of each childs background.
Curriculum for All Learners
There is no avoiding that each child has different needs in the classroom. According
Howard Gardner there are nine types of intelligences (Berns 2016, p. 191). I want to educate
myself on all of these different types so I can create a successful learning environment for my
students. Each child not only differs by learning styles, social development stages, or cultural
each child has their own intelligence. For students to get any better at an area of content they
must fully understand the lower levels or basic structures of something. As the teacher I will
need to be aware of the childs zone of proximal development. This will allow for not giving
students work that is too easy for them or too hard for them either. After I know what level they
are on I can assist and guide them on the levels they are at. Incorporating this into the
curriculum is crucial for the development of students.
It is important to include the students in the classroom and allow them to give the teacher
feedback. Who is a better, more informed person that knows whats going on in the classroom
everyday than a teachers very own students? They are the best people to be giving feedback on
how to better delivery and instruction on lessons. Getting feedback and advice on how to better
myself as the teacher from my students can be very beneficial, they can inform me on what isnt
working and what does really well and what makes the information stick a little better.
One of the most important traits a teacher must possess is being organized and prepared. I
hope someday when I am sitting behind a teachers desk I am able to create fun and creative
lessons that engage my students. It is important that teachers plan ahead and make organized and
structured lessons that will motivate students to want to learn. I believe teachers shouldnt just

STATEMENT OF INFORMED BELIEFS

throw something together just to get their lesson plans done, I think teachers should be
passionate and caring with everything they do. Students can see this and it makes them want to
be there learning that topic, and it shows teachers they are really getting it. The teacher is then
giving students motives to want to learn. That is the most exciting thing about being a teacher is
seeing students getting that aha moment. Many people dont see all the hard work behind this,
but it is all worth it.
Conclusion
I have found something that I thoroughly love and am passionate about. I am ready to put
all my beliefs and motives into my classroom and create what I have always dreamt of doing. I
am ready to be accountable for the education of children, I not only want to teach them the
information I have to but also teach them to be better, and more passionate and intelligent human
beings.

References
Berns, R. (2016). Child, family, school, community: Socialization and support (10th ed.).
Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.

STATEMENT OF INFORMED BELIEFS