Philosophy of Education

Teaching philosophies comes from life experiences. Growing up in Southern California

exposed me to many cultures and different learning environments. For instance, learning about

John Muir and the naturalist point of view gave me a love of nature and having a large diverse

student body contributed to my open and tolerant views of mankind. Learning mythology,

religion, and culture has opened my mind to a diverse world. Growing up the desire to be an

educator was always present but after coming to ASU I realized that being a teacher is my

passion.

Historically the purpose of education was an idea and practice of a universal obligatory

public education that developed from the 16th century in Europe (Gray). Education was an idea

that had many supporters who had their own agendas relating to lessons that children should

learn (Gray). Breaking the educational mold and create an environment that facilitates natural

curiosity in children to develop a way that children desire to learn and be productive members in

the classroom is one of my goals. The role of the teacher in education is to help students apply

concepts, through classroom instruction, presentations, and activities. I strongly believe in field

trips to further educational goals. I will actively encourage group discussions, often being a

mediator and to play as the “devil’s advocate” to portray different ways to think and to challenge

my students. Reenactments, documentaries, and stories can bring history to life. At the beginning

of the year I will implement student government in the classroom, where we will have volunteer

classroom duties and chores. Students may vote to have a classmate be the class president. The

classroom president will lead in a rotation system for assigned class duties as pre-class set up and

after class clean up as well creating a student study group schedule.

 The role of the student in education is to be responsible for their own success in the

learning process. Students must be actively involved in the learning process and should behave

appropriately for a learning environment. If a student fails to engage, I will try to find out what is

holding that student back from active participation and if there is anything that can be done to

remedy the situation.

Teachers are role models as well as community leaders. Moral beliefs and having a

lifestyle that is appropriate is necessary for teachers to be a proper role model for any child. I

support the parent of any child and their decision of what type of community is needed to help

support their child. I understand there are many avenues to learn material. I plan to be open to

different teaching techniques to reach all children no matter what type of learning style suits

them best. As a teacher I will try to make myself available to be an advocate for fostering a

healthy learning environment for both children and parents. The parent role is to support the

education process. I will keep communication channels open for questions or concerns that

parents may have for the material or for their child specifically. As the field of education

expands and grows, new theories and techniques will advance on how learning takes place

effectively. Keeping up with new technology is imperative as an educator so one can grow along

with their students to making learning possible.