My Teaching Philosophy...
When I graduated from high school my theater teacher, mentor, and future colleague gave me a copy of Parker J. Palmer’s book The Courage to Teach. In the first chapter of this book Palmer writes, “Good teachers…weave a complex web of connections among themselves, their subjects, and their students so that students can learn to weave a world for themselves.”
I was inspired to become a teacher because I was lucky enough to have some incredible teachers myself who made me love to learn and helped me begin to “weave my own world.” For me, one of the greatest joys in teaching is watching a student discover self-confidence in his or her abilities and begin to truly enjoy learning. In order for this to happen, I feel it is crucial to make material accessible to all learners, to create a safe environment that encourages risk taking, and to promote the discovery of connections between oneself and the ever changing, 21st century global world.
One thing I know about myself is I am a strong linguistic learner, but by working with students for whom reading and writing is not the clearest pathway into the subject matter, I have gained an appreciation for other methods of teaching. I aim to use differentiated instruction to reach all students in my classroom, including those for whom traditional teaching strategies are less effective. I love teaching Theatre because it perfectly lends itself to using diverse approaches in order to reach a full range of learners with many different abilities and strengths. In English classrooms as well, I strive to create lesson plans that target all types of learning styles. I strongly believe that it is only by making the material accessible to all students that I will be able to reach them and inspire them to feel encouraged about learning. I feel if I am not working hard to make the material approachable, how can I expect my students to work equally hard to learn and understand it?
An integral part of the learning process, in my opinion, is taking risks and making mistakes. I try to make this point clear to my students by encouraging them to always try, even if they might not always be right. Whether in the form of writing a particularly challenging essay, performing a monologue, or even just making a comment out loud in a class discussion, students face intimidating situations in classrooms everyday. In order to support a learning environment that encourages overcoming these challenges, I work very hard to establish and maintain a safe learning space. I stress the importance of respecting oneself and each other, to allow us all, myself included, to take risks, share, and grow without fear of judgment. In my first few years of teaching I have learned that his extends beyond the classroom to students’ interactions in their social lives, and in particular, through their online social medial connections. In my classroom and extracurricular program I stress the importance of also sustaining a “safe-space” outside the physical walls of our school. I feel it is important to remind students that this safe-space is crucial to the work that we do but can be destroyed through a single comment or the smallest of inappropriate actions. I share responsibility for maintaining our safe learning environment with my students so that they know it is up to both of us to create an atmosphere that works for, and protects everyone.
The biggest obstacle I think we fight against as educators is discouragement of our students. Once a student looses confidence in his or her ability to learn, it is extremely difficult to pull that student back to a place where learning can occur. As a teacher I try to recognize when a student is struggling, and make an extra effort to help that individual get back on track. This requires recognition of even very small accomplishments, and appreciation of contributions that might otherwise go unnoticed. Teaching a student to enjoy learning requires tapping into what makes that student feel good about him or herself. Recognizing and praising strengths is equally important to correcting and criticizing weaknesses. It is so easy to forget this detail when we get bogged down in all the work that comes with our jobs; but I try to remember to always find something positive about the work of each student. In recognizing the strength of my students, I hope to encourage them as learners in my classroom, and as member of society.
The most important thing for me as a teacher is encouraging my students to feel good about the work they do in school. Learning has always been an important part of my life and I strive to pass my joy for learning onto my students. By supporting them as they take risks and face challenges I hope to promote their confidence as learners. I think a confident learner will be a confident member of global society and will go on to accomplish incredible things. I hope to help students develop their own ideas and points and view, and confidently take those ideas out into the world once they leave my classroom. As Palmer says, I try to “weave a complex web of connections,” to help my students discover how their individual experiences in the classroom connect to the larger setting of their entire school, their communities, and the world around them.
I was inspired to become a teacher because I was lucky enough to have some incredible teachers myself who made me love to learn and helped me begin to “weave my own world.” For me, one of the greatest joys in teaching is watching a student discover self-confidence in his or her abilities and begin to truly enjoy learning. In order for this to happen, I feel it is crucial to make material accessible to all learners, to create a safe environment that encourages risk taking, and to promote the discovery of connections between oneself and the ever changing, 21st century global world.
One thing I know about myself is I am a strong linguistic learner, but by working with students for whom reading and writing is not the clearest pathway into the subject matter, I have gained an appreciation for other methods of teaching. I aim to use differentiated instruction to reach all students in my classroom, including those for whom traditional teaching strategies are less effective. I love teaching Theatre because it perfectly lends itself to using diverse approaches in order to reach a full range of learners with many different abilities and strengths. In English classrooms as well, I strive to create lesson plans that target all types of learning styles. I strongly believe that it is only by making the material accessible to all students that I will be able to reach them and inspire them to feel encouraged about learning. I feel if I am not working hard to make the material approachable, how can I expect my students to work equally hard to learn and understand it?
An integral part of the learning process, in my opinion, is taking risks and making mistakes. I try to make this point clear to my students by encouraging them to always try, even if they might not always be right. Whether in the form of writing a particularly challenging essay, performing a monologue, or even just making a comment out loud in a class discussion, students face intimidating situations in classrooms everyday. In order to support a learning environment that encourages overcoming these challenges, I work very hard to establish and maintain a safe learning space. I stress the importance of respecting oneself and each other, to allow us all, myself included, to take risks, share, and grow without fear of judgment. In my first few years of teaching I have learned that his extends beyond the classroom to students’ interactions in their social lives, and in particular, through their online social medial connections. In my classroom and extracurricular program I stress the importance of also sustaining a “safe-space” outside the physical walls of our school. I feel it is important to remind students that this safe-space is crucial to the work that we do but can be destroyed through a single comment or the smallest of inappropriate actions. I share responsibility for maintaining our safe learning environment with my students so that they know it is up to both of us to create an atmosphere that works for, and protects everyone.
The biggest obstacle I think we fight against as educators is discouragement of our students. Once a student looses confidence in his or her ability to learn, it is extremely difficult to pull that student back to a place where learning can occur. As a teacher I try to recognize when a student is struggling, and make an extra effort to help that individual get back on track. This requires recognition of even very small accomplishments, and appreciation of contributions that might otherwise go unnoticed. Teaching a student to enjoy learning requires tapping into what makes that student feel good about him or herself. Recognizing and praising strengths is equally important to correcting and criticizing weaknesses. It is so easy to forget this detail when we get bogged down in all the work that comes with our jobs; but I try to remember to always find something positive about the work of each student. In recognizing the strength of my students, I hope to encourage them as learners in my classroom, and as member of society.
The most important thing for me as a teacher is encouraging my students to feel good about the work they do in school. Learning has always been an important part of my life and I strive to pass my joy for learning onto my students. By supporting them as they take risks and face challenges I hope to promote their confidence as learners. I think a confident learner will be a confident member of global society and will go on to accomplish incredible things. I hope to help students develop their own ideas and points and view, and confidently take those ideas out into the world once they leave my classroom. As Palmer says, I try to “weave a complex web of connections,” to help my students discover how their individual experiences in the classroom connect to the larger setting of their entire school, their communities, and the world around them.