Nadine Bergen, 1522

Professor David Catterick

LING 429 Professional Issues in TESOL
8 December 2014

TEACHING PHILOSOPHY
The task of the modern educator is not to cut down jungles, but to irrigate deserts.
C. S. Lewis

Teachers have the ability to cut down their students or help them grow and flourish.
Going through the education system I have experienced both ends of the spectrum, but I am
fortunate to have had a Spanish teacher who shared her passion for language and culture with
her students. During my three years in her class, Seora Shupak demonstrated kindness,
patience and a willingness to help us all grow in every area of our lives. As a result of the
passion for learning languages that Seora Shupak awakened in me; I want to share that joy
with my students, as they build their English language learning experience into all aspects of
their lives. I want to be a teacher who adds to their jungles of knowledge and experience by
watering the uncultivated parts of their lives.
As a teacher I believe that what I teach in the classroom will only take root in my
students if I first build rapport with them. One of the main reasons why Seora Shupak was so
effective as a teacher was the fact that she built relationships with her students. Not only was
she approachable both inside and outside the classroom, but she was willing to sacrifice her
personal time in order to help students with extra-curricular activities. I have seen firsthand
through my practicums and internship how much time it takes to build relationships and trust
with students. However, when trust is built students are more willing to take risks as they feel
that the teacher cares about their holistic growth. The first few days of TESOL Practicum II I was
extremely nervous. I had a class full of international university students whom I had to convince
that I knew what I was talking about and that I cared about them. Even though my time with
them as a teacher was limited to twelve hours, it felt like a breakthrough moment when a few
of the quieter students came out of their shells and asked me questions in between classes.
This showed me that I had gained their trust as a teacher and they viewed me as approachable.
This show of vulnerability allowed me to see who they were as English language learners, as
well as regular people with many different life experiences. As the week progressed and I had a
chance to spend more time with my students, I knew that each one had the potential to excel in
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English and use it for great things. As an English teacher, I believe that instead of simply
building on the existing knowledge that my students have, I am planting seeds and watering the
growth that has already taken place. My desire as a teacher is to pour into my students by
providing them with language skills that they can apply to all areas of their lives. In doing so I
want my students to have their own aspirations for how to use English as a means to grow. As I
seek to accomplish this I want to show them optimism and enthusiasm, and provide
encouragement.1 Therefore, building a strong relationship with my students is vital for my
ability to inspire them as learners.
Being in a position of influence allows me to cultivate the desire to learn in my students.
Motivation plays a major role in learning, and it affects the students overall achievements.
When students are motivated, they can see the benefits of learning English, for it is by
applying self-motivating strategies, learners assume responsibility and regulatory control of
their own motivational disposition.2 Furthermore, Barry Taylor sees the need to foster selfinvestment and whole-person goal accomplishment as a condition for effective learning
through engagement with communicative tasks.3 When my students step foot in the
classroom I want them to engage with and see the value in learning English; whether they are
instrumentally motivated, integratively motivated, motivated by the results of learning, or
intrinsically motivated.4 It is when their eyes are opened to the joy of language learning that I
can encourage them to pursue their passions and dreams, to reach their full potential. The
more time I spend with students the more I can see where they are excelling or struggling and I
can draw out their individual strengths and help them improve upon areas of learning which
are more difficult. Some students may need more urging, but it is a wonderful feeling knowing
that a student has overcome something with which they used to struggle. During my TESOL
Internship in China I experienced this breakthrough with many of my students. I spent four
weeks teaching methodology and language skills to twelve Chinese English teachers who even
though they had been teaching for many years, had had little formal training. From the very
beginning I knew that one of my older students, Mali, was very shy and had a lower grasp of
English than some of the other students. Talking with Mali required more patience and effort as
her receptive skills were not as strong, although her writing skills were better. The last week of
the course each student had to do a ten minute micro-teaching assignment. When it came time
for her turn, Mali stepped in front of the class and spoke with confidence and understanding.
Throughout the time that I had with Mali I tried to encourage her by applauding her work and
noting her progress. In the end, I saw that she was motivated and wanted to overcome her
weaknesses.
My ultimate goal as a teacher is to foster learner autonomy, by giving my students the
skills and confidence to aid their individual learning. In order to achieve this goal, students need
1

Drnyei, Group dynamics in the language classroom, 2003, p. 101.

Drnyei, The psychology of the language learner: individual differences in second language acquisition, 2005, p.
111.
3
Widdowson, Aspects of language teaching, 1990, p. 188.
4
Ellis, Second language acquisition, 1997, pp. 75-76.
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to be encouraged to produce the language without being afraid of failure or embarrassment. If

students never try, they will never be able to improve. As their teacher, I want them to get the
most out of the learning process as possible, which means that language errors will be made.
At the same time, error correction needs to be a part of the classroom. When correcting, it is
necessary to develop sensitivity to students needs and expectations, especially as different
students react differently to being corrected.5 Building learner autonomy takes time, and takes
different shapes and forms for each student. Once students feel that they know what is
expected of them and are given feedback that they can understand and apply, they are able to
learn with confidence. Motivation is necessary for students in order to be autonomous, as it
requires effort on the part of the student. During my time in China I worked to help my
students gain the skills and methods so that they could be autonomous learners. It was when
they did their individual micro-teaching that I saw how much they had been able to do on their
own, after I had shown them what my expectations were. In addition to fostering learner
autonomy inside the classroom, I want my students to be able to apply their knowledge
gleaned in the classroom to their lives outside of school. I have seen the benefits of making
connections between new information and old information, which is something that is
important for second language learners as they are trying to adapt to a new language within a
culture. It is when students use their newly acquired skills outside of the classroom that they
can interact with native speakers and grow in their confidence and abilities, aiding their overall
desire and capability to learn. As more interaction takes place, the social distance6 between
groups will start to decrease. The more students are able to build meaning outside of the class,
the more they will build meaning into the class.
Learning and growing as a teacher is very important for me. Learning is a continuous
process and does not end when you graduate or finish a course; it is a lifelong process. As an
English language teacher I believe that learning other languages and cultures not only helps me
grow in my effectiveness as a teacher, but it teaches me to be sensitive to my students needs
as second language learners. In this sense I am irrigating my own desert, which will then
overflow into my students. As I am willing to learn and be vulnerable with others, I can be a
living example to those who are around me. I like bringing joy to my students, and I can do this
by learning about their culture, just as they are learning about my culture. Every time I would
say something in Mandarin to my Chinese students or in German to my German students, they
would smile or laugh. It is said that to make no effort to learn anothers language is by itself a
form of rejection of people. We cannot separate ourselves from the language we speak. It is
how we define ourselves and make meaning out of life. Not to know my language is not to
know me.7 Being a language learner is important, yet it is also important to grow in other ways
professionally. I desire to grow professionally, to acquire new knowledge and skills,8 so that I
will not become ineffective in my teaching. This includes learning about error correction,
effective tools for the classroom and learning to create more effective lessons and materials. As
5

Nunan, The self-directed teacher: managing the learning process, 2000, p. 68.
Ellis, 1997, p. 40.
7
Elmer, Cross-cultural servanthood: serving the world in Christlike humility, 2006, p. 66.
8
Bailey, Pursuing professional development: the self as source, 2001, p. 6.
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the world continues to change, along with methodology and ideas, it becomes necessary to
adapt as a teacher.9 Professional development is very important to me, yet it is also important
to remember who I am as a teacher in spite of the changes that may take place in the world of
TESOL.
Even as I desire continued growth, there are already many areas in which I have
developed as a teacher. I have had the privilege of teaching immigrants and refugees,
international students, German teens and Chinese English language teachers: in all of these
situations I have learned ways in which I can improve as a teacher. When I had my first
experience teaching I was afraid to deviate from the lesson plan, because I thought that that
was not the best practice. However, the more I have taught the more I have learned to relax
and to adapt the materials and lessons when necessary. The more time I have spent with my
students, the more I am able to see who they are as people. As their teacher, I care about them
and want the best for their lives. This leads me to look deeper into their lives and see what
motivates them and what may be affecting their work in class. Through all of my teaching
experiences I have realized that the process is more important than the product. I have grown
in my confidence as an English Language teacher, yet I realize that there is still more for me to
learn. This is also what I desire for my students, wherever I may have the privilege of teaching.

Ibid., p. 7.

REFERENCES

Bailey, K., Curtis, A., & Nunan, D. (2001).Pursuing professional development: The self as
source. Boston, MA: Heinle & Heinle.
Drnyei, Z. (2005). The psychology of the language learner: Individual differences in second
language acquisition. Mahwah, N.J.: L. Erlbaum.
Drnyei, Z., & Murphey, T. (2003). Group dynamics in the language classroom. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press.
Ellis, R. (1997). Second language acquisition. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Elmer, D. (2006). Cross-cultural Servanthood: Serving the world in Christlike humility.
Downers
Grove, Ill.: IVP Books.
Norton, B. (2000). Identity and language learning: Gender, ethnicity and educational change.
Harlow, England: Longman.
Nunan, D., & Lamb, C. (2000). The self-directed teacher: Managing the learning process (4th
ed.). Cambridge [England: Cambridge University Press.
Widdowson, H. (1990). Aspects of language teaching. Oxford: Oxford University Press.