Learning Philosophy

Growing up I lacked confidence and never felt successful as a student. I moved around quite a bit and attended three elementary schools before gaining some stability in the fourth grade. Education was not my number one priority and performing good enough was “ok”. This is not the case today! It took practice and self reflection to realize that “ok” was not good enough. I had to change my mindset. Once that was changed, my path to learning was activated! I am now a confident person who is passionate about learning.

Sir Kenneth Robinson explains that learning is organic because our circumstances create our paths in which we explore our talents. I believe this to be true. My past lead me to become the person I am today. Those trials and tribulations molded me into a strong and determined individual. It is my belief that one size does not fit all. That’s why I strongly believe that learning should be personalized. Personalized learning gives the learner exactly what they need in order to be successful. Why are we still trying to do things the way we’ve always done them? We have an abundance of tools that allow us to differentiate instruction within our classrooms. Learning should be transformed and students should be given a choice through personalized learning models.

My beliefs about how I learn and teach are holistic and intertwined. I am a lead learner that continuously seeks out new instructional methods for the benefit of my students. In the book, Start.Right.Now., the authors describe an excellent leader as someone who “grows the way”. Twitter, Google Plus Groups, and Facebook PLNs have become my communities in which I learn and grow. These communities inspire and challenge me to take risks in my classroom and how I learn. Last year, I decided to try the flipped classroom approach. Through the implementation of the flipped approach, I discovered how putting students in charge of their learning creates self motivation. They were motivated and ready for instruction because they had prepared. This transformation didn’t stop there. Class time became a blended learning environment that played host to communities of learning. Blended learning has not only created self-directed learners but this environment has also instilled confidence. I have empowered them to seek answers on their own and they are accepting the challenge. My students are taking risks by questioning and figuring out solutions on their own. Amy Mayer from FriEdTechnology visited my classroom recently and saw this to be evident through conversations she had with my students. She was amazed to witness how confident they were about their learning.

I learn best by doing and build knowledge through practice. I am a constructivist who builds learning from prior knowledge. The big idea in constructivism is that learning is active and a constructive process. I teach this way as well. My lessons build upon each other using Bloom's’ Taxonomy. For example, we generated student word problems using multiple learning strategies. First, we identified what we knew about multiplication through multiple strategies using manipulatives and collaborations. Next, we applied our knowledge about multiplication through the dissection of word problems collaboratively. Last, we designed our own word problems and illustrations using digital tools. Our final product was a culmination of events that lead up to the final level of Bloom’s. This lesson not only deepened their knowledge for multiplication it also lent itself 21st century skills applications. I believe students learn best when they are given experiences that are connected to a foundation.

Imagine how our educational system would be if we personalized learning for every student by building upon their foundation. We would see tremendous growth because every student would be learning at their own pace and level. They would be getting exactly what they needed to be successful and confident. It is my goal to transform the educational experience of kids because they deserve an innovative experience.

Bibliography

Casas, J., Whitaker, T., & Zoul, J., & (2017). Start. Right. Now.: teach and lead for excellence. San Diego, CA: Dave Burgess Consulting, Inc.

In the book, Start.Right.Now., the authors define four behaviors that excellent leaders possess. Excellent leaders should “know the way”. They must know every aspect of their job. These leaders must know their stuff inside and out or should be able to find the information for others. They should also “show the way”. These leaders should be comfortable with modeling and demonstrating for others. Another behavior they must possess is “going the way”. Their expectations are high and they must “walk the walk”. They last behavior that excellence leaders own is “growing the way”. They must be lifelong learners who understand it’s never “good enough” and will never settle for mediocre.

Constructivist Theory (Jerome Bruner). (n.d.). Retrieved March 09, 2018, from http://www.instructionaldesign.org/theories/constructivist.html

One of the founders of the constructivist theory was Jerome Bruner. He explains that learning “is an active process in which learners construct new ideas or concepts based upon their current/past knowledge.” The principles to constructivism are: creating readiness experiences for students, making instruction easily obtainable and spiral for review, and instruction should be personalized.

[TED] (2018 March 09). Bring on the learning revolution! | Sir Ken Robinson. [Video File]. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r9LelXa3U_I&feature=youtu.be

Sir Kenneth Robinson states that education needs a revolution and we need to change with the changing times. He stresses how education should be transformed into more of a personalized learning environment. He explains that our education system must move away from standard testing because learning is not linear, it is organic. We create our lives based on our circumstances and not everyone has the same path.

Nesloney, T., & Welcome, A. (2016). Kids deserve it!: pushing boundaries and challenging conventional thinking. San Diego, CA: Dave Burgess Consulting, Inc

Todd Nesloney and Adam Welcome tell an inspirational story about what educators can do to be the number difference makers for kids. They recap true stories of how they made an impact on the lives of their students by doing what’s best for kids. It’s an uplifting, thought provoking story of how educators should consider what they do everyday with kids matters.