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My Teaching Philosophy
I think my teaching philosophy is best defined as a combination of progressivism and social reconstructionism. David Sadker, author of "Teachers Schools and Society", defines the progressive educator as someone who, "(…) facilitates learning by helping students formulate meaningful questions and devise strategies to answer those questions", while social reconstructionism emphasizes cooperation, less conflict, and a better quality of life. These two teaching philosophies in combination seem to both fit my view on how learning should be facilitated and how it should be based.
Progressive teachers tend to, like myself, look for inventive, new, and creative ways to see a problem. In putting students into groups they find there are many possible solutions to problems that they would not likely figure out on their own. I also advocate the progressive approach because I think it promotes children to think for themselves, in that if everyone is not researching the same idea or solution they are less likely to depend on someone else to supply the answer, and mo...
The decision to become a teacher was one that I made when I was in the ninth grade. When I entered high school I worked at a summer camp every year with disadvantaged children. The children ages ranged from six years old to sixteen years old. The feeling that I received when I saw that I could make a difference in their lives was so rewarding that I knew I wanted to become a teacher. I grew up as the youngest of six children, finishing high school was very important to my brothers and sisters, but finishing college was never really stressed to them by my mother. Three of my siblings
Progressivism emerged in the early 1900’s with John Dewey as its philosophical founder. Progressivism, unlike essentialism bases its beliefs far from your typical classroom setting. John Dewey wanted to unchain the desks that bind the students to the classroom and allow students to learn their education as they interact with their environment. Emerged in the 1970’s was the third philosophy of education, critical theory. Critical theory is known as the radical end of progressivism. Critical theorists, such as Henry Giroux and Jonathan Kozol, sought to create the classroom to be a place where teachers and students could negotiate on what the curriculum should be and what they should learn that day. Although all individually unique from one another, each of these philosophies have historical value and play a huge role in today’s system of education.
I am a soul believer in progressivism. I believe that when John Dewey taught that we are social animals who learn well through increases when we are engaged in activities that interest us, he was not just talking about classrooms in his time, but classrooms in the future as well. Students must be taken beyond the basic curriculum and be allowed to expand their knowledge through their own interests. Students need to be respected for their own individuality. No two people can learn the same way and most students have their own strategy of learning. Teachers need to be able to recognize that sometimes a student can only learn in one fashion and in that fashion alone. This is why we must compensate for every student in the classroom to bring a variety of teaching styles to be sure to include every student.
My own Philosophical Orientation is a mix of Progressive and Humanistic. I like both concepts which include, problem solving, experience based education, lifelong learning, experimental learning, feelings, interactive, and openness. I feel both concepts will help Adult Educators and Adults learners find success and become well-rounded individuals in our society.
Educational philosophies do not singlehandedly define who we are as educators. There is almost always a mix between philosophies that identify our values as educators. I found that I have identified most with a progressive philosophy, also known as a pragmatist philosophy. This philosophy stood out to me when I had first learned about the different types and my guess that I fit into this category most was confirmed when I scored my sheet.
In order to continue this, progressivist’s views and ways of teaching need to be taught to upcoming teachers. As teachers it is important to attend to the students as a whole, not only making them better learners, but also better people showing not only intellectual growth, but growth in other things such as social skills. Making the child “the center of gravity” will lead to students getting a better understanding of learning and will help them grow intellectually (Alfie Kohn). Meaning since each student is so different from one another it is important to see what works best for each student, and meet their needs before anything else. Having a largely progressivist approach on teaching will greatly benefit
My philosophy at this point is progressivism. William James and John Dewey are accredited for developing the characteristically American philosophy that is progressivism. Progressivism relies on the theory that the student should be the focal point. By adjusting the curriculum and teaching techniques to reflect the student’s needs and interests, the teacher is encouraging the student’s desire to learn. Another theory of progressivism is that of a democratic system. Students will fare better in life if they are exposed to the ideas and cultures of different ethnicities and personalities early. By encouraging group work, instead of solo work that will lead to competitions, the students will be more open minded and will be better prepared for the diverse world.
Ever since I was young, I have wanted to become a teacher. Throughout my education I’ve had some outstanding teachers who have inspired me to one day become a teacher. Teaching is not just a job. Teachers mold their students into independent and self-sufficient members of society. Teachers give their students’ knowledge to succeed in everyday life. I believe that teachers should play multiple roles, not just one. Teachers should be the motivator, the facilitator, the challenger, and the supporter in their students’ lives. Without teachers or some form of education, ignorance would reign the world. Each teacher has their own personal views on teaching, how students learn, classroom goals, and professional development. When thinking about my future as a teacher there are many questions that come to mind. How do I plan to teach when I have my first classroom? What content or topics will I focus on? What teaching strategies will I use to help my students learn? How will I relate to my students? Many teachers have educational philosophies that guide them in the classroom. Philosophy is a set of principles we choose to live by, even though we often consciously think about them. A philosophy is a statement about the beliefs and ideals that underlie your thinking. After taking many surveys over educational philosophies to see what my philosophy would be, the results showed that many of the philosophies listed best fit my thinking about education. When considering what my educational philosophy would be, I done a little research and choose progressivism.
The first and most important of the three formal educational philosophies that have been major influences on the formation of my own philosophy is progressivism. Progressivism is based on the belief that people learn best from what they consider to be relevant to their every day lives. In other words, students learn best from personal experience, hands-on experiments, and from interacting in groups with those around them. However, for these small groups to be entirely effective, they must be chosen at random; basing the groups on race, gender, sexuality, or social background will defeat their main purpose.
“Education is a social process; education is growth; education is not preparation for life but is life itself.” John Dewey describes and supports progressivism, an education philosophy that I professionally identify with. Progressivism is a student centered philosophy that focuses on experiences, opportunities, and values that enhance a student 's learning and life. The role of the teacher is to act primarily as a facilitator of learning, they encourage and guide students to explore and promote individual development. As a future educator I believe it is important to involve students and allow them to take responsibility for their own learning and achieving their goals. The role of the student is to discover, engage, and express themselves.
The progressivist believes in the progress of student’s education. I believe that all students deserve success, but that the parent, student, and teacher must work together to achieve that success. Creativity and encouragement in the classroom are key to my philosophy of education. The only way to be an effective teacher is to step out of the box and into the lives of each of our students.
A teacher plays a very important role in a child’s life, and that is the main reason I want to be a teacher. I want to be able to inspire, empower and help children to discover their unique learning ability, special interests and qualities. As a teacher I will be able to give students the gift of an education, which will help them advance as adults. I feel that there are many ways to go about teaching and managing a positive learning environment. I want to have a classroom in which students feel personally altered by their experience in my classroom. Progressivism is one major philosophical approach that I plan to use in my classroom, along with an assertive discipline approach.
Progressivism, as an educational philosophy, relies in the importance for the learner of the scientific method, metacognitive skills, active intelligence, individual self-expression, tolerance of varying belief, importance of the present, complexity and pluralities of experience (Brameld, 1995). Progressivism requires that students work on problem-solving, inquiry, proper behavior, and group-work. Through progressivism, educators develop students’ knowledge through experimentation, experiences of the physical and cultural context. Learners learn by doing (Cohen, 1999). John Dewey was one of the most representative proponents of the progressivism. Cited by Oliva (2001), Dewey states that it is necessary to bring into the classrooms learners ' needs and interests, and recognize the importance of learners ' background that comes to school along with learners '
Following secondary school some student head straight into the work force, while others attend college. Therefore, while in grade school, not only is content important, but preparation for the real world .Progressive teachers goals are to educate the student intellectually while working to make them good people in our society. Being a mentor rather than a boss and allowing student some control over how they learn is an important part of progressivism. Progressive learning is also about critical thinking, social skills, personal experience and lifelong learning. Relating your real life experiences to learning is a way of progressivism. Learning is rooted in the questions of learners that arise through experiencing the world.(Cohen & Gelbrich, 1999). As a student real life has always been a learning tool, and is something I will use as an educator. There is always something you like over something else; relating what you don’t like to what you like can make learning more interesting. As a second grader, I did not like grammar but I loved learning all the word to my favorite songs. We used a learning tool called Shirley Method, where grammar and sentenced parts were put into songs. This helped me engage more and retain the knowledge.
Teaching is a daunting task that I do not intend to take lightly. Becoming a teacher has been a dream of mine for several years. I always knew that teaching would be the career for me, especially when I began working in the school system as a substitute secretary. I loved working in the school environment; coming in contact with children everyday made me realize how much I would enjoy teaching a classroom full of students.