My Philosophy
There are many reasons why I chose education as my life. After the birth of my son, I realized that every parent, for at least the first five years of life, is an educator. I made my decision to formally educate when I successfully helped my son count to ten for the first time. Looking at such a young and impressionable face, gleaming with pride at his accomplishment, I allowed myself to see through his eyes and feel his pride. At that moment, I knew that I wanted to give the gift of education to other children as well.
I feel strongly that a teacher should be more than an authority figure, seven hours a day, five days per week. For me, a successful teacher is concerned about their students twenty-four hours a day. A teacher should become a friend. While maintaining a position of authority, a teacher that can allow their students into their life will be successful in any classroom. To err is human, and for a student to view their teacher as someone with the same strengths, feelings, and weaknesses as they have, it allows them to feel at ease to ask questions, and challenge the facts. Many children live in working parent homes, and more often than not are left to do homework on their own. As a future teacher, I find nothing wrong with allowing students into my life, and calling my home for help. Often, this is the only help they will have available.
Albert Bandura developed the theory of observational learning, which is learning through imitation of others. He states four stages in observational learning, starting with attention, retention, reproduction, and finally, motivation. This is very pertinent in education, and I think these four stages are the building blocks of learning. The child must first be able to focus on the subject at hand, and mentally retain the information. The child must absorb the knowledge obtained, and reproduce or relay it to another. This could also be understood as comprehension, and this is where learning is taking shape. The final stage, I feel is the most important, which is motivation. Without it, learning cannot take place. If the child does not want to actively learn, they will not. As a teacher, I think you must frequently evaluate your teaching styles using these four stages. Ask yourself questions. Do you have the students’ attention? Are they listening to you speak? Do they understand you? Finally, and most importantly, are they interested? Interest will motivate a child to retain information. A bored child might as well not even be in your room. They are not benefiting from your lesson, and that could possibly be our failure as educators.
The issue of curriculum and how it is chosen is very disturbing to me. Today’s curriculum includes topics that will teach a child long division, how to conjugate a verb, and the gas composition of the earth’s atmosphere. What the curriculum is not teaching is morality, respect, and ethics. As an educator, this is something that I wish to strive for. So often, you pass children in the halls, calling names, bullying, using racial slang, and other derogatory comments. There is no “bad” child, only ignorant children. Ignorance can be swayed with education. In a classroom of students with varied ethnic backgrounds, one must teach that child to respect each other’s culture and have pride in their own. The way to achieve this is through educating your students about cultural diversity. English class need not be focused on Shakespeare. There are innumerable ethnic authors that equally deserve to be a part of the curriculum. Why aren’t they studied? The school year is ten months long. Why is black history only allotted one month? These questions, no matter how insignificant to the school board, sends a message to the students that their culture is not important enough to be realized.
As a potential educator, you are told to be fair and impartial to every child. You are told not to look at culture, race or sex when in front of a class. To assume these practices in today’s schools where all children, regardless of ability, are mainstreamed, and classrooms are very culturally diverse, is a poor choice. To give the gift of education to all children, you must look at every child as an individual. You must look at a poorly progressing child and ask yourself, “Why is this child not performing up to their potential?” As a future educator, I will not treat every child equally. This statement is not intended to be taken as discriminatory or preferential to one or another. Some children require more time than others. Some children may need that quiet encouragement, while others are confident enough to answer questions. The biggest mistake made by educators is denying attention and praise to the child that “has a firm grasp of the material,” or the child that is “doing well.” I have integrated Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs into my own philosophy. Simply put, Maslow explains, to determine the root of a child’s problem (aggression, introvert, depressed), you must determine their lowest level of unmet needs. If a child is acting out in class, they may be exerting their need for affection, or trying to express their need for acceptance. The Hierarchy of Needs begins with the basic drives in life, being food, shelter, safety, and what is necessary to sustain life. It moves up the pyramid to include needs, which would include esteem, affection, and self actualization, which could be described as being the best person that you can be. Maslow says, “If you are lacking something at any level, you are not able to progress to the next.” Emotional conflict is the roadblock in the pathway of success. If a child is experiencing problems at home, their learning will be affected. Becoming involved in your students’ lives allows for trust. If you can show trust for a student, they will begin to have trust in you. If you can determine what they are lacking, you will have the capacity to resolve their problem, and open their window to learning.
Not only does a student learn from their teacher, but with an open mind, a teacher undoubtedly learns from their students. If you welcome your students’ comments, and respect their process of thought it can only help you grow as a person and keep you intuitive to your students’ needs. To see through the child’s eyes, can open doors to possibilities never dreamed of.
As an educator, I cannot single-handedly close the cultural gaps in society. But I can give each and every child that I encounter my unwavering dedication, in the hopes that I could make a positive impact on every one of their lives. And I hope that through my own learning and experiences that I will be able to see through their eyes and feel their pride as they overcome hurdles and reach their own goals in their lives. If I can accomplish this, in my heart, I will be successful.
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