My Philosophy of Education
“Read to me, Mom?” With storybook in hand and pleading look on her face, my once three-year-old daughter, Sara, would often ask, “Read to me, Mom?”
The magic that is reading is something I saw first hand growing up my mother pouring over novels, or my dad reading his WWII books. I saw, so I tried to emulate. I began with the Disney books and the Dr. Seuss series and the countless books of fairy tales. As I grew older, my tastes changed, yet my fascination with reading was ever-present. Reading was fun.
As an educator, one of my goals is to try to get students to read. Since I believe that reading is one of the most important activities a person can do to attain knowledge, I want to plant a little seed inside of them that will foster a love for reading and learning. To accomplish this, I expose my students to readings that are meaningful. Through my experiences as a learner and as an educator, I feel more strongly towards readings that evoke emotion since the mind will remember and create a connection if the stimulus is emotion based.
Success in my eyes is seeing that reluctant student begin reading on his or her own. Success for me is seeing students voice their feelings toward a piece of literature and find that they have learned something.
My philosophy of education also centers on creating a nurturing and supportive campus climate to ensure student success. Just as teachers are prepared through on-going staff development opportunities, students must receive on-going support and positive reinforcement so that they can realize their potential. Yes, all children can learn, but they do not all learn the same way. Understanding the characteristics or perhaps the challenges that children face will help teachers meet some of the basic needs in the classroom. Teachers must ensure that those children feel that they are loved and cared for before they feel safe and secure.
People attribute successes and failures to such factors as ability, luck, effort, mood, interest, and unfair procedures. This belief is due in large part because of past negative experiences. Failure should not be seen as a devastating end, but as a gauge that more work needs to be done. Teachers must do what they can to end the cycle of students thinking that just doing enough to avoid failing is “o.k.”. Therefore, students need to feel safe in their learning environments. Also, using cooperative group assignments may help students feel safe with volunteering or sharing. If a student feels safe in the classroom, then the notions of doing enough to just “get by” to avoid embarrassment will not be a learned reaction or coping mechanism. The goal is for all children to reach self-actualization or self-fulfillment so that achievement, competence, status, and recognition will soon follow.
The magic that is reading is something I saw first hand growing up my mother pouring over novels, or my dad reading his WWII books. I saw, so I tried to emulate. I began with the Disney books and the Dr. Seuss series and the countless books of fairy tales. As I grew older, my tastes changed, yet my fascination with reading was ever-present. Reading was fun.
As an educator, one of my goals is to try to get students to read. Since I believe that reading is one of the most important activities a person can do to attain knowledge, I want to plant a little seed inside of them that will foster a love for reading and learning. To accomplish this, I expose my students to readings that are meaningful. Through my experiences as a learner and as an educator, I feel more strongly towards readings that evoke emotion since the mind will remember and create a connection if the stimulus is emotion based.
Success in my eyes is seeing that reluctant student begin reading on his or her own. Success for me is seeing students voice their feelings toward a piece of literature and find that they have learned something.
My philosophy of education also centers on creating a nurturing and supportive campus climate to ensure student success. Just as teachers are prepared through on-going staff development opportunities, students must receive on-going support and positive reinforcement so that they can realize their potential. Yes, all children can learn, but they do not all learn the same way. Understanding the characteristics or perhaps the challenges that children face will help teachers meet some of the basic needs in the classroom. Teachers must ensure that those children feel that they are loved and cared for before they feel safe and secure.
People attribute successes and failures to such factors as ability, luck, effort, mood, interest, and unfair procedures. This belief is due in large part because of past negative experiences. Failure should not be seen as a devastating end, but as a gauge that more work needs to be done. Teachers must do what they can to end the cycle of students thinking that just doing enough to avoid failing is “o.k.”. Therefore, students need to feel safe in their learning environments. Also, using cooperative group assignments may help students feel safe with volunteering or sharing. If a student feels safe in the classroom, then the notions of doing enough to just “get by” to avoid embarrassment will not be a learned reaction or coping mechanism. The goal is for all children to reach self-actualization or self-fulfillment so that achievement, competence, status, and recognition will soon follow.