Philosophy of Teaching

Learning is innate, it is what we humans are best at. It is up to the educator to inspire students to want to learn more than is necessary, to want to explore a subject until their curiosity is satiated. I will always lead by example, by showing my students that learning is never really over if you have growth in mind and by furthering my own understanding of how to deepen a student’s thinking by posing challenging questions with higher order thinking being the goal. This is how children learn, by growing into a concept. It is a truism that the only things that change are the things that challenge you. I do not want my students to ever say that their work is “good enough” but rather that they “do their best” and mean it. If that is truly the case, then that student will have developed a growth mindset, which is the most important tool in learning in all fields.

I try to invest in the individual by having this same growth mindset. I understand that there is limitless potential for all of us to improve as long as we are challenged, supported, and encouraged, no matter what our past experiences tell us. In this way I will always vary instruction to account for the current Zone of Proximal Development (the range of difficulty where a student is challenged but not frustrated) of each student. New experiences matter, our reactions to these new experiences matters even more. With this in mind, an emphasis on adaptability will be a part of my classroom, students will be required to work in groups to solve problems based real world scenarios and students will be active in their learning thereby, ensuring a whole body connection to new information. I believe that having a symbiotic relationship with the community is vital to the success of my teaching philosophy. My students will be made aware of their integral role in society and how they can affect real change by just caring enough to participate. Much of the focus for the classroom will be community involvement so there is much I can learn from my students, parents, faculty, and rest of the community as well. I will try to lead by example, by having an open door policy in my classroom, I will encourage my student’s parents to come and learn with us!

Philosophy of Discipline:

I believe that the secret to avoiding common behavioral problems is establishing positive classroom procedures for daily tasks and activities. Consistency is essential and once they have internalized classroom procedures, the day will run smoothly now that they have a routine built into their day. I will define what you expect of students from the very beginning. By creating a positive classroom climate my students will feel safe, secure and will be engaged with their own learning. I will have several discussions with the students about maintaining the right climate in their classroom. They will help with ideas of how they think the classroom should run and they will help me enforce everyone’s expectations.

            My classroom plan will help to develop student involvement and cooperation in classroom activities and will help establish a productive working environment. To establish a productive working environment I will make my room stimulating and inviting. Classroom displays and arrangements will be functional and inviting. Students will be more invested in working in an environment that they helped decorate. In this way they can remind themselves of classroom procedures by making their own posters of them. If there are further difficulties in following instruction then I will have the student leave the room on an errand. This will hopefully break the negative cycle and refocus both of us on learning. Only after a student’s behaviour becomes discouraging to others learning will I ask for more direct help from administrators and parents. I believe self-awareness to be one of the most important skills to have in becoming a viable member of society. Therefore, I will afford students every opportunity to self-correct before enlisting other tactics.