Educational Philosophy
As teachers, we have been endowed with responsibility of shaping the minds of future generations. Education is, perhaps, the most important foundational aspect of our civilization, and I feel that, as an educator, it is my responsibility to help my students realize the significance of learning. I believe my students should learn not only learn facts and processes, but to also how to interact with their surroundings and to know why and how their environment affects them. I believe that students should foster their own educational beliefs and, especially at the high school level, begin to take the steps that will lead them into a successful future beyond their basic educational years. As a teacher, I want to be there to guide them on their personal pathways.
I’ve never been able to decide which role I prefer: educator or student. Just as my students come to class to learn from me, I feel it is my privilege to learn from them as well. I learn their individual personalities and their little quirks, their likes and dislikes, as well as how they interact with their classmates. In turn, it is my goal to help my students learn about themselves in a scientific setting, to assist themselves in identifying with science on a personal level. Throughout their prior years of education, they have learned that an insect’s body is comprised of three parts, that the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell, that the sun is our nearest star, and that an asteroid killed the dinosaurs. In the past, science has been about learning facts, reciting vocabulary, and reproducing the same information on an assessment. However, I don’t want my students to focus so much on what they know but how they know it; science should not be repetition but, instead, should be interpretation.
One of the most important things I want my students to walk away with is a newfound understanding of their world and the mechanics that drive it. Within the subject matter of science no two processes affect the world in the same way. Much the same, no two students have identical ways of learning. If students are not learning with the way we teach, it is our responsibility to alter our tactics and teach the way they learn. Not every student can learn by listening to a lecture or reading a passage out of a textbook. It is true that lectures and reading can be great educational tools when used correctly, but I believe that the most effective way for children to learn is through participation and involvement. It is my experience that the more students are directly involved in their own education, the more pride they take, and the more successful they tend to be in the end.
While many concepts in science may appear daunting and intimidating, I hope my classroom is a place where science is celebrated instead of shunned. I want students to lift up their eyes in excitement rather than turn up their nose at the mere mention of the word. Creative lesson plans, student engagement, and active learning are all basic concepts that will drive learning and success. If any subject can embody the concept of active learning, it’s science! Students should be provided a wide range of opportunities for learning, from group work to individual projects, partner sharing to unit tasks. Hands-on activities, research projects, cooperative learning groups, Skype calls with individuals working in a particular field, and giving students a chance to express themselves through the completion of a project of their choice are all opportunities I hope to provide.
In assessing student learning, sometimes the simple ways are the best ways. Asking reinforcing questions, providing demonstrations and having students replicate the results, even playing games are methods in which learning can be evaluated without the use of intimidating quizzes and tests. While beneficial in their own ways, I do not believe in “teaching to the test” but that tests should be designed around what students have learned through the course of a particular unit.
It is not only the instructor who drives the success of each student. Additional support comes from classmates, parents, and other educators in the school. While it may not be possible to determine how students interact with each other outside my own classroom, it is up to me to determine how I can garner supplementary support from outside sources. I believe in keeping parents informed of their child’s performance, both negative and positive. While it is imperative that parents know when their child is struggling, it is my opinion that they also be informed when a student is doing particularly well. Collaborating with colleagues whom a student may have previously worked with can also be beneficial in gaining additional insight into a student’s learning style and capabilities. Student achievement has the opportunity to increase when the important people in a student’s life are on the same page and urging them along the same path to academic success.
In the end, students should enter the classroom, not wary of constant evaluation, but thirsting to learn and leave the classroom not only satiated, but with a renewed thirst for learning. Days don’t pass us by without leaving something behind that we can take and apply to our lives; teachers should do the same. A great teacher can awaken in a student a desire to be taught and a craving to succeed. Such is the aspiration that I have as a teacher: to renew in each of my students a love of learning.
I’ve never been able to decide which role I prefer: educator or student. Just as my students come to class to learn from me, I feel it is my privilege to learn from them as well. I learn their individual personalities and their little quirks, their likes and dislikes, as well as how they interact with their classmates. In turn, it is my goal to help my students learn about themselves in a scientific setting, to assist themselves in identifying with science on a personal level. Throughout their prior years of education, they have learned that an insect’s body is comprised of three parts, that the mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell, that the sun is our nearest star, and that an asteroid killed the dinosaurs. In the past, science has been about learning facts, reciting vocabulary, and reproducing the same information on an assessment. However, I don’t want my students to focus so much on what they know but how they know it; science should not be repetition but, instead, should be interpretation.
One of the most important things I want my students to walk away with is a newfound understanding of their world and the mechanics that drive it. Within the subject matter of science no two processes affect the world in the same way. Much the same, no two students have identical ways of learning. If students are not learning with the way we teach, it is our responsibility to alter our tactics and teach the way they learn. Not every student can learn by listening to a lecture or reading a passage out of a textbook. It is true that lectures and reading can be great educational tools when used correctly, but I believe that the most effective way for children to learn is through participation and involvement. It is my experience that the more students are directly involved in their own education, the more pride they take, and the more successful they tend to be in the end.
While many concepts in science may appear daunting and intimidating, I hope my classroom is a place where science is celebrated instead of shunned. I want students to lift up their eyes in excitement rather than turn up their nose at the mere mention of the word. Creative lesson plans, student engagement, and active learning are all basic concepts that will drive learning and success. If any subject can embody the concept of active learning, it’s science! Students should be provided a wide range of opportunities for learning, from group work to individual projects, partner sharing to unit tasks. Hands-on activities, research projects, cooperative learning groups, Skype calls with individuals working in a particular field, and giving students a chance to express themselves through the completion of a project of their choice are all opportunities I hope to provide.
In assessing student learning, sometimes the simple ways are the best ways. Asking reinforcing questions, providing demonstrations and having students replicate the results, even playing games are methods in which learning can be evaluated without the use of intimidating quizzes and tests. While beneficial in their own ways, I do not believe in “teaching to the test” but that tests should be designed around what students have learned through the course of a particular unit.
It is not only the instructor who drives the success of each student. Additional support comes from classmates, parents, and other educators in the school. While it may not be possible to determine how students interact with each other outside my own classroom, it is up to me to determine how I can garner supplementary support from outside sources. I believe in keeping parents informed of their child’s performance, both negative and positive. While it is imperative that parents know when their child is struggling, it is my opinion that they also be informed when a student is doing particularly well. Collaborating with colleagues whom a student may have previously worked with can also be beneficial in gaining additional insight into a student’s learning style and capabilities. Student achievement has the opportunity to increase when the important people in a student’s life are on the same page and urging them along the same path to academic success.
In the end, students should enter the classroom, not wary of constant evaluation, but thirsting to learn and leave the classroom not only satiated, but with a renewed thirst for learning. Days don’t pass us by without leaving something behind that we can take and apply to our lives; teachers should do the same. A great teacher can awaken in a student a desire to be taught and a craving to succeed. Such is the aspiration that I have as a teacher: to renew in each of my students a love of learning.