Teaching Philosophy

I chose teaching as a profession because I was inspired by the love and patience that was demonstrated by my high school teacher Mrs. Wolf. Along the way, however, I started to strive to become someone students can look to as a mentor or role model and an adult students can use as a pillar for support. As a student I preferred more hands-on instruction with visuals. I believe being able to see concepts in different ways encourages the use and practice of different strategies, and, the more options, the better. I also believe that teaching is much easier when an instructor knows how their students act, what can be affecting their lives, and other factors that surround student life. With this in mind, an ideal classroom is one that is a safe environment for both student and teachers to express themselves. A classroom where students are participating and upholding classroom expectations and the teacher is encouraging student thinking and engagement. With a supportive and safe learning environment my students will be more encouraged to learn and I will learn more from and about them. I believe the relationship between teaching and learning is a balance that cannot exist without each other. When teaching, I would have learned the content beforehand to explain the concepts to students. For my students to learn, I would need to teach different learning strategies to accommodate them at different levels. I think learning is the progression and improvement of student thinking, behavior, and actions. That is to say, my role in the classroom is to be a guide and facilitator. I believe in instilling independence, initiative, and agency within students so that they feel encouraged to learn on their own. Through this self-motivated learning, students will achieve the agency they need to take control of their lives when they are out in the real world and looking for careers or trying to find their identities. I will always be looking to improve my teaching and make learning more fun for students. I will do this by reflecting on my lessons and data, taking the least effective parts of my strategies, and reworking them to fit my students’ needs. I will also transform the stronger parts of my lesson to freshen up the learning, so my students do not become bored or antsy. By modelling this self-reflective practice, I hope that my students can learn how to evaluate themselves and change for the better, always making an effort to learn more and be greater.