Teaching Philosophy Statement
My philosophy of education draws on a number of theoretical frameworks. However, the key component is the individual, more specifically, the child. Each of us - each child - is different and unique, even though we reflect a socially constructed view of the world. The tension between difference and shared construction can be conceived of as a result of each individual’s experiences. Such experiences are a result of living in a social world and are different from those experienced by others. In addition, the way in which each individual incorporates these experiences into his or her overall understandings, through making relationships or making meaningful connections, results in uniqueness.
In general, I see teaching and learning occurring in a classroom community based on providing opportunities for students to develop the skills and understandings necessary (a) to function effectively in a democracy, (b) to conduct inquiry, (c) to individually and socially negotiate and construct meaningful understandings, (d) to critically examine the relevance of particular modes of inquiry and particular knowledge claims for the specific context in which they are working, and (e) to develop complex understandings both within and across disciplinary boundaries. Point “d” refers to finding the middle ground between the unrestricted relativism of some postmodernist critiques and the positivism that has marked our previous approaches to learning and teaching. My entire philosophy and approach to teaching and learning science is elaborated upon in my book from Irwin Publishing: Creating a Classroom Community of Young Scientists: A Desktop Companion.
With this scenario as the basis, I see education as a process of constructing complex, meaningful understandings. The essential ingredient in this process is providing opportunities for children to understand relationships. All too often in schooling, we teach children what some "thing" is without seeing how that "thing" is related to other things. The patterns of how "things" are connected needs to be the primary focus. For instance, in science we may teach children that a sparrow is a bird and that birds have certain characteristics. However, this view is essentially devoid of context and meaning. Alternatively, we can look at how birds are related to other organisms in their structure, actions, and so forth (i.e., homology, analogy, evolution, etc.). We can help children connect their ideas about and personal experiences with birds to math, poetry, art, music, and other disciplines. The potential richness of meaning needs to be the focus.
Personality is a set of individual differences that are affected by the development of an individual: values, attitudes, personal memories, social relationships, habits, and skills. Different personality theorists present their own definitions of the word based on their theoretical positions. The term "personality trait" refers to enduring personal characteristics that are revealed in a particular pattern of behaviour in a variety of situations. Personality can be determined through a variety of tests. However, dimensions of personality and scales of personality tests vary and often are poorly defined.
Jones, Robert . "Dambusters’ bouncing bomb." How It Works Magazine. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Feb.
... my classroom I have created an environment where we are a family and as a whole school we are a village where interdependence is celebrated and we work together to do the best for our children and each other. In our village we all need to love and be loved. If I didn’t love my children I would not be catering for their needs. For successful learning to take place the children need to feel a sense of worth and meaning. Each child in my class is here for a reason and are valued as individuals whose lives are meaningful and so worthwhile (Groome, 1998, p. 93).
Any school curriculum should aim at enabling children to be able to think in broader terms, motivate them to want to be more knowledgeable and above all, allow them to come up with new approaches to problem solving. However, more too often teachers tend to limit the students to only the known facts in text books, something which prompts them to remain in their comfort zones. Additionally, the purpose of any formal education is not only to gain formal knowledge but also to gain social knowledge. Different teachers will have different approaches to achieve this. Despite the approach used, in the end of the day, they are expected to have involved and impacted positively on the different characters of children in their classrooms that is, the shy,
This article is about children’s perspective and how to get valid meaningful information from the child’s perspective about their learning experiences. This paper focuses on a sociocultural perspective of children as learners in their own right and co-constructers of their own meaning of learning (Smith, Duncan, & Marshall, 2005). This article also looks at how children can contribute to and make meaning of their learning and how they express that. Children use meaning-making to make sense of their world through and by the experience of narratives (Wright, 2012, p. 26). By using a sociocultural view of children, they are seen in a positive light that sees them as competent confident learners who can contribute and have a voice. This is also
This course has taught me a lot about the different personality theories as well as the best known psychology theorists that have developed these theories. Personality consists of the thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that make an individual unique. Numerous theories have been emerged to implicit the different features of personality. The main purpose of some theories is to focus on explaining how personality developed.
If you are a parent or plan to be a parent, Do you want your child to sit in a desk all day while the teacher lectures them on information that they need to know for life or would you rather have your child learn constructively? Constructivism has been labeled as the philosophy of learning that proposes learners need to build their own understanding of new ideas (Constructivism and the Five E?s,2001). Learning something new, or attempting to understand something familiar in greater depth, is not a linear process. The purpose of this research paper is to explain the theoretical foundations of the constructivist approach to teaching and learning, and to provide concrete examples to show the effectiveness of the constructivist approach with respect to student learning.
What is the purpose of education? A question that has been asked for centuries and defined in many ways; each theorist will argue their views on education is unsurpassed, yet it remains a question, that the future of our children depends upon. My personal philosophy of education is to create an environment that allows every child the freedom and ability to discover, create and pursue their interests; ultimately becoming the best they can, for an evolving and unpredictable future. Within this framework, the purpose being to encourage learning through children’s interests, by personalising education for the individual and interlacing subjects to engage and entice learning. While discussing my personal philosophy of education, I will explain the aim of education, consider the role of the teacher and the learner and present effective teaching methods and practices for within the classroom. This essay will demonstrate that Dewey, Friedman, Neill, Noddings, Robinson, and Zhao, support my personal philosophy and prove in contrast with the theories of Skinner and Rousseau.
Childhood can be seen as a social status with multiple meanings and expectations attached to it without a clearly defined end or beginning (Montgomery 2009), This essay will introduce different sociological perspectives on what childhood is since childhood is not universal rather is it mobile and shifting this means children experience various childhoods there are local and global variations(Waller 2009), a Childs experience can be influenced by their gender, ethnicity, culture and social class which this essay will expand on. The essay will then move forward to focusing on childhood in local and global countries to investigate the differences they have among each other lastly the essay will go onto ways an professional can help acknowledge all children diversity and create an inclusive environment regardless of their differences (Penn 2008).inclusion provides support to all children so that their experiences in an educational; setting encourages them to be as involved and independent as possible as well as help them understand the differences among their class mates
The virtual schoolbag enables children to grasp a better concept of their identity, who they are, where they came from and be proud of the positive abilities they possess such as their current skills, knowledge and interests. Through the intergraded use of the intended, enacted and hidden curriculum and frameworks children are able to gain the confidence they need in order to succeed. Research suggests that positive self-esteem depends on whether or not children feel that others accept them as competent and worthwhile (Siraj-Blatchford & Clark, 2004, p. 23). This research also suggests self-esteem is also connected to academic achievements (Siraj-Blatchford & Clark, 2004, p. 23). Exploring the Early Years Learning Framework, outcome one point four, children have a strong sense of identity: children develop knowledgeable and confident self-identities (EYLF, 2009, p. 21). The implementation of the curriculum is a dynamic process and in order for outcome one to be achieved, reference to the social, cultural and community context in which the curriculum is created is required (MacLauchlan, Fleer & Edwards, 2010, p. 65). In the early years children are vulnerable and the various adults in a child’s life can impact on their beliefs, views and actions (Siraj-Blatchford & Clark, 2004, p. 22). As teachers are highly influential beings within a child’s life, it is important
As a sophomore, I was required to compile a genre of educational philosophies and create my own philosophy in the process. Today, as a senior I am required to “revise” that statement into one that is sophisticated and intelligent based on new information that I have received in the last two years. One instructor said to me, “Your view on educational elements may have changed,” and another said, “Randy, your philosophy on the way you view yourself as a teacher and the view of your classroom may have evolved into a more manageable, realistic perspective,” and they were both right.
...the demands of driving, but the fundamental problem may be the behaviour of the individuals willing to pick up the technology" (Reimer, 2009).
Jaime Escalante, a great educator, once said, “The teacher gives us the desire to learn, the desire to be Somebody.” As a teacher, my goal will be to show students that each of them can be whatever they want to be, and not only are they capable of being good at what they do, they can be the best. To reach this goal, I must be an effective teacher, which I believe can best be accomplished by teaching in a way that is comfortable for me. Therefore, I will not base my classroom around one single philosophy; I am going to seek comfort by utilizing certain aspects of different educational philosophies, namely essentialism, existentialism, progressivism, and social reconstructionism.
The process of educating children may seem like a clear-cut, straight-forward process to some people; however, this is far from the case. There are five philosophies of education (essentialism, perennialism, progressivism, social reconstructionism, and existentialism) that vary in their educational approaches. These philosophies can be grouped into two categories: ...