A Philosophy of Education By Constance McCarty
I believe that each child is a unique individual who needs a secure and nurturing environment that encourages them to grow physically, intellectually, socially, and emotionally. As a teacher I will help students meet their maximum potential in all of these areas by providing an atmosphere that is safe, exploratory, and invites participation in brainstorming. There are three elements that I believe are encouraging to creating such an environment, (1) allow a student’s excitement and curiosity to guide their education, (2) advocating respect for all things and people, and (3) the teacher guiding the children through each process of development.
By allowing a student to have ownership in the curriculum you stimulate interest
to master the skills as well as motivate them to work hard to reach their goals. By relating the lessons to real life applications and connecting them to personal interests the rewards are intrinsic and hold more meaning to the students. The opportunity to study things that are interesting and give input into their curriculum will put a personal stake into setting goals and generating discussions and ideas. With a personal stake in learning the lessons this will promote self-discovery.
By guiding students to foster a respect for themselves, others, and their environment occurs through brainstorming of ideas and a thoughtful approach to discipline. By allowing each student a voice and allowing each student the freedom to express their self you create an environment of respect, tolerance and understanding. By allowing a time to encourage such dialogue children have greater respect for their teachers, and their peers. By fostering an atmosphere where students feel safe and understand what is expected of them they develop a respect for learning the skills and lessons necessary for them to function in the outside world. In setting fair and consistent rules and showing the importance of every activity, students are shown respect. When given respect they will then learn to respect themselves, others, and their environment.
By looking at the role of a teacher as more of a guide on an adventure we remove the negative association of an authoritarian. By providing access to information rather than acting as the primary source of information, the students learn how to find answers to their own questions and solve their own problems. By allowing students the opportunity to practice and discover for themselves and to explore real life situations you satisfy their need to construct knowledge. By providing students with hands-on activities and materials that support the lesson being studied you create an opportunity for individual discovery and construction of knowledge to occur.
Teaching is a lifelong learning process. You are learning about new philosophies learning new strategies, learning from the parents and the community, learning from colleagues, learning from situations and mistakes, and most importantly learning from the children. When you go into this with the understanding and the expectation that you will and should learn just as much as your students this does become an adventure and you as a guide is not only natural but is just as fun and exciting for you as it should be for the children.
By allowing a student to have ownership in the curriculum you stimulate interest
to master the skills as well as motivate them to work hard to reach their goals. By relating the lessons to real life applications and connecting them to personal interests the rewards are intrinsic and hold more meaning to the students. The opportunity to study things that are interesting and give input into their curriculum will put a personal stake into setting goals and generating discussions and ideas. With a personal stake in learning the lessons this will promote self-discovery.
By guiding students to foster a respect for themselves, others, and their environment occurs through brainstorming of ideas and a thoughtful approach to discipline. By allowing each student a voice and allowing each student the freedom to express their self you create an environment of respect, tolerance and understanding. By allowing a time to encourage such dialogue children have greater respect for their teachers, and their peers. By fostering an atmosphere where students feel safe and understand what is expected of them they develop a respect for learning the skills and lessons necessary for them to function in the outside world. In setting fair and consistent rules and showing the importance of every activity, students are shown respect. When given respect they will then learn to respect themselves, others, and their environment.
By looking at the role of a teacher as more of a guide on an adventure we remove the negative association of an authoritarian. By providing access to information rather than acting as the primary source of information, the students learn how to find answers to their own questions and solve their own problems. By allowing students the opportunity to practice and discover for themselves and to explore real life situations you satisfy their need to construct knowledge. By providing students with hands-on activities and materials that support the lesson being studied you create an opportunity for individual discovery and construction of knowledge to occur.
Teaching is a lifelong learning process. You are learning about new philosophies learning new strategies, learning from the parents and the community, learning from colleagues, learning from situations and mistakes, and most importantly learning from the children. When you go into this with the understanding and the expectation that you will and should learn just as much as your students this does become an adventure and you as a guide is not only natural but is just as fun and exciting for you as it should be for the children.