My Philosophy of Teaching and Learning (Dr. Frances Vitali)
Several years ago, I began sharing my teaching philosophy with students. This act was prompted by some reflection on my part and that of my students. In a diversity class, a student asked why we were doing a particular assignment, and it
occurred to me that it made perfectly good sense to me following in my planning but I had not shared my reasoning or
rationale of scaffolding their learning, beginning with their experiences and extending that to thinking about students
they teach.
This prompted a reflection of my own philosophy of teaching. I revisit my philosophy of teaching and learning annually
to center myself in my own reflective practice. I can remember the enthusiasm of drafting my original teaching
philosophy as a young teacher. My philosophy has evolved and one vestige that has remained constant is the quote
attributed to Einstein: “Imagination is more important than knowledge.” Jerome Bruner emphasized that “imagination is
the basis of all science, literature, and philosophy-and of everyday experience and the ‘self’ as well” (Smith, 1991). Koste
(1980) emphasized the significance of play in learning as “play is the rehearsal for life.” Furthermore, Gardner (1991)
wrote “Education that takes seriously the ideas and institutions of the young child is far more likely to achieve success
than education that ignores these views...The ideas of the young child...are powerful and are likely to remain alive
throughout life. Only if these ideas are taken seriously, engaged, and eventually trimmed or transformed so that more
developed and comprehensive conceptions can come to the fore-only then does an education for understanding
become possible” (1991, p. 248). Lastly, Mark Twain, frankly quips: "I never let my schooling interfere with my education"
as a reminder that we always need to question the integrity of our profession.
What is important for you to know about me:
Teaching to me is fun, spontaneous, interesting, relevant, energetic, experiential. I teach by example and am
unorthodox and playful. Call it the guerrilla school of learning. Learning to me is fun and the best learning happens in
conversational, informal, and relaxed settings. I provide learning opportunities through experiential and engaging
activities for you to explore our course content. I facilitate, coordinate, stimulate, instigate. Above all, my goal in every
course is to make the learning environment interesting, energizing and inspiring to entice you to follow your own
interests, curiosity, and questions. You bring prior experiences with you and you will add to that. What you need to
know, you will also learn from your students and peers, if you are receptive. Students and teacher have opportunities to
learn beside each other, as Seymour Papert, reminds us. Constructivists learn from stories, so stories are important to all
learning and teaching. We will create stories together that will become our own learning and teaching stories-teach with
stories and learn from stories.
My approach to education is from a social constructivist perspective acknowledging that you construct your own
knowledge which is best accomplished through social interactions and dynamics stimulated by small group and
classroom discussions, presentations, hands-on practice, and field experience practica.
What is important for you to know about this course:
The syllabus is our framework. I have taken time to provide timelines and due dates in an organized way for you to
follow. We all will have opportunities to navigate around ambiguity and problem-solving independently and cooperatively
making our learning our own.Flexibility and adapting to change are not only a prerequisite of 21st century skills but those
qualities of a teacher.Learners in the process of learning must also learn to tolerate uncertainties and ambiguities. For example,
learners may be encouraged to read or talk by comprehending the overall gist of the message as opposed to
concentrating on every single word in the message. And if they do not understand, they should be willing to ask
for help...Learners must also learn to live with errors and not let errors become an impediment to their learning.
In general, learners in a communicative paradigm must eventually learn how to take charge of their learning,
with guided support. Zainuddin, et. al., 2007, p. 75
This is an experiential course where you are as much part of the learning process as I. I will be learning alongside you
and see myself more as a facilitator and director in your learning adventure. I also expect you to be curious and question
what you do not understand or where you need more clarification. We are creating a learning community where we are
experiencing together how the course will play out. That cannot be determined in advance since we will be engaging
together in a processual, experiential learning adventure together. Learning should be fun, informal, relaxed, whimsical
and self-motivated and intrinsic. I have set the framework and the way it plays out is up to you. Working with school
students in a classroom provides an authentic context in which to learn and teach together. Therefore it represents an
important part your course experience and reflection.
Stories are central to our learning as content and context for learning. Stories as funds of knowledge are what you and
your students bring into the classroom. Christensen (2000), encourages teachers to give legitimacy to this knowledge.
As teachers, we have daily opportunities to affirm that our students’ lives and language are unique and
important. We do that in the selections of literature we read, in the history we choose to teach, and we do it by
giving legitimacy to our student’s lives as a content worthy of study.” May students continue to draw from their
own stories in making sense of and connecting to their own learning.” (p. 103)
What you need to know about my philosophy of education:
I am a humanist and constructivist. Our learning is shared together and we honor individuality, our collective diversity,
different ways of learning, expressing and sharing in our learning community as culturally responsive people and
educators.
The kind of student you are will determine the kind of educator you become. If you are scared of learning, you will teach
with fear. If you want to control what students learn, you will try to control their learning. If you honor children and their
creativity and playfulness, you will celebrate the ways in which they learn and give them ample room for discovery.
If you learn because you have to or somebody is making you or because you are supposed to do it that way, or that’s
what they want, then you will place limitations on your learning experience and, in turn, those of your future students.
Learn because YOU want to. As a professional, it is not about what is easiest or most convenient for you in earning your
education degree. What is most important is trying to be the best, to challenge yourself; to stretch yourself from your
comfort zone and to seek comfort as a learner. Teacher, learner, and change are synonymous. Change means you have
learned something in the process. Learning means you have been changed in the process. Change implies you have
learned something new. I hold myself up to the same standards I am requiring of you. I will never ask you to do anything
I would not do myself. My learning is intertwined with your learning.
“Imagination is more important than knowledge,” as attributed to Einstein, is what I wrote in my philosophy of teaching
many years ago. And so, I believe it is even more so applicable today. For what are we preparing students: a world of
constant change and dealing with problems that have never existed before? So what is important in educating children
is to nurture flexible, independent thinkers who can problem-solve cooperatively, possessing communication competence with
diverse people within diverse settings, virtually and face-to-face.
Your learning is for you, guided by your interests, motivation, and curiosity. Anticipate that you are learners who are
nurtured in a stimulating environment of inquiry where goals and objectives are set; yet the ways to them are as
different and creative as the number of people in our class. Questions are required and are encouraged. Communication
and trust are crucial in building our learning community. Without it, I will flounder in supporting your learning and our
collective learning will be out of balance.
Please honor your uniqueness within the learning environment, respecting there are multiple ways and multiple stories
in understanding anything and everything. I will respect your individuality. Our single views can only reveal partial
understanding, anyway, since there are so many storied individuals with such different perspectives and experiences.
Children throughout the history of education have always been linguistically diverse; since the 1990s we are recognizing
and validating that these differences do exist. What is effective for English Language Learners (ELL) is effective for all
students, for children of all ages, continue to be language learners. As educators, we become more aware of our own biases,
stereotypes,prejudices, privileges, power, and recognize the inequalities that exist and persist within the institution of education.
As culturally responsive educationalists, we honor the stories that children bring into their learning environment and use
those as the content and context for learning. Language arts is a conduit to bridge this sometimes disconnect between students'
home lives and school lives.
As reconceptualists, we do not take everything we teach for granted but become discerning educators who
recognize bias, censorship, racial proclivities; inequalities in the curriculum we teach; disparity in the system of
education and the policy makers who establish the rules which govern our profession. As culturally relevant teachers we
become activists and advocates for our students challenging the system in the best interests of our students.
Professional integrity is also important to me, for as educators, our jobs are just as important and life supporting as
health professionals or company CEOs. Therefore, it is imperative that we hold ourselves to high standards also. We
should have adroit writing, reading, spelling, and communication skills. We should think of ourselves as writers and
readers who are constantly challenging ourselves in our own learning and teaching. We should never ask of our students
to do anything we would not do ourselves.
I am a forward-thinking educator who does not settle on what is, but rather what can be in the best interests of students
and their learning. We do not need to teach our students but rather give them opportunities to learn about themselves
and others in their world; to be able to express themselves in the ways they interpret their world - inside and out. Therefore seeking
authentic, meaningful, and relevant ways to engage students is a focus so we do not waste their precious time.
As Neil Postman said, “Our children are living messages we send to a time we may never see.”
As teachers, how do we best prepare students for their futures?
References
Christensen, L. (2000). Reading, writing, and rising up: Teaching about social justice and the power of the written word.
Milwaukee, WI: Rethinking Schools, p. 103.
Smith, F. (1990). To Think.Teacher’s College.
Koste, V. (1980). Dramatic play in childhood: Rehearsal for life. Anchorage Press.
Gardner, H. (1991). Unschooled mind: How children think and how schools should teach. New York: Basic Books.
Zainuddin, et. al. (2007). Fundamentals of teaching English to speakers of other languages in k-12 mainstream
classrooms. Dubuque, IA: Kendall/Hunt, p. 75 (& excerpted from our course text)