My Teaching Philosophy

As a teacher, I aim to spark a love for lifelong, joyful learning. My classroom is built on the foundational values of collaboration, trust, and encouragement in order to create a space where everyone can be the learner and the teacher. This breaks down the traditional narrative of student-teacher roles and shows that knowledge is not merely memorized, but rather stems from a process of communication where students can share their knowledge and cultures with others, enriching the classroom experience. I teach social-emotional vulnerability in making mistakes and growing from them with the help of the people around me, hoping to inspire my students to do the same. I teach with a guiding force of curiosity by asking questions constantly, finding answers together, and always being open to questions. Each student has a different level of interaction with this mode of learning, but every student can learn from another’s questions.

Because each student is different, I implement equity standards into my teaching and give each student what they need to be successful in and out of the classroom. I spend intricate time getting to know my students and understanding their learning needs. This then allows me to tailor the learning objectives to the students in front of me. I work hard to keep my socio-cultural knowledge up-to-date and minimize any stereotypes or implicit biases I may hold in order to teach my students that everyone belongs and is valued. 

In order to execute these values and goals, I attempt to find educational frameworks that promote joyful, caring, and education-loving classrooms. I implement new and engaging ways of learning and focus on the experience the students have while learning. My students and I ask questions and search for answers together, we explore our relationships to the topic being discussed, and tell relevant stories in order to learn from experience. Through using these learning strategies, students have shown engagement in content, excitement for more knowledge, and willingness to connect to the topics being taught. An example of this is when I began to prompt my students to do sit spots at Mount Pisgah Arboretum and told them an inspiring story of one of my sit spots. I spoke of a time I got to see a juvenile bald eagle and its parents defending seals from seagulls, and awe was struck in the students’ eyes with hopes of having a similar experience during their sit spot. We then got to experience their first sit spot together, in which many students got to have one of these awe-striking moments just like mine. This has further built my connection to the students and brought a wave of awe into the classroom.