My philosophy of education has been, and always will be, an emergent and evolving philosophy, that truly is based on the needs of my students. I began my education pathway in fall 2013, however, I have known since I was a child that I wanted to be a teacher. As a second grader in a multi-age classroom, I could help the younger students if they needed it. Whether if it was with math or writing, I enjoyed being asked for help, which always felt like such an amazing opportunity and, more importantly, was a lot of fun. Maybe I just liked being helpful, but I knew deep down that what I was doing was important in some way. I remember feeling guilty if I could not help a fellow student, that somehow (in my seven-year-old mind) I had failed myself and my classmate. I cared so much about whether my peers were successful too. Their happiness was my happiness.
Reminiscing now, it is so clear that this is the profession I want to spend the rest of my life doing. It took me a long time to decide exactly what I wanted to teach, or in what capacity, but I finally and very happily landed on studying early elementary education and working as an early childhood educator while going to school at University of Maine at Augusta.
Having the chance to go to a University is something so many young people in this world won't get but desperately desire. Sadly, some of todays generation will just turn that opportunity down. Education leads to endless possibilities, so why say no to that? I am determined to be an Early Elementary school teacher because I want to start from the beginning with my students. I want my students to feel motivated to be successful, confident, but most importantly happy and positive learners. I want them to always be proud of what they can do, and to never settle for anything other than their very best. Finally, I want my students to never stop asking questions. Without the courage to ask why or how, we won't learn anything more than what is spelled out for us. I want my students to question rules and methods so that they know why they are important to follow or maybe they can be the catalysts for changing the way that they learn. If they learn to question everything early on, then hopefully they won't hold back later in life.
During my time at UMA I studied John Dewey, the founder of Progressivism. Progressivism, at the time of it's foundation, was a more radical yet constant-changing method, a student-centered philosophy. After reading his ideologies and methods, I instantly wished that that was how my curriculum had been run. One challenge I faced in school was not that I fell behind in the classroom and failed, but that I was ignored by a lot of my teachers. I was an average student, earning B's and C's in my classes. The saddest part is that I can't remember more than a couple of teachers who actually asked if I needed more help because they did see promise in me. Ultimately, I then found myself not wanting to try harder than what it took to pass my classes. That would be my biggest fear as a teacher. I will not let that happen to my students.
Between the time I started my Early Elementary Education minor at UMA and working at Peopleplace Cooperative preschool, I knew that I absolutely synched and believed in a student-centered philosophy. In fall 2013 I wrote, "As a teacher, I will encourage my students to help others and adjust the classroom curricula around that, while always making sure my students feel that they have received enough instruction, attention and care from me. My goal for them is to be always willing to learn more, to always be excited for what's next for them and to never stop asking questions. I will assess how they have learned through projects they complete. I won't give out standardized tests, besides state required tests if necessary. I want to urge students to write or draw stories. A creative outlet for the students without the pressure of an exam with questions. I will make it a point to make sure my students are able to follow through with the written standards given by the state. I won't let any student feel ignored because their grades are average. Every student is exceptional in my eyes, thus every student will be treated and assessed equally and fair." Looking back now, almost four years later, after almost three years as a preschool teacher, I can still say honestly that still rings true to me, but with a more confident approach.
Working at Peopleplace Cooperative preschool has been, and always will be, the job that changed me, challenged me, and made me have such a strong love for working with children. I have learned so much about what it means to be a caring, devoted, honest educator. Personally, I think that the reason why I grew so much as an adult, while working with three to five-year-olds, has been working with and studying the Reggio Emilia philosophy. I can honestly say that when I describe my philosophy of education, it will be solely based around Reggio Emilia.
Learning the methods and philosophy of Reggio Emilia has shaped my personal teaching philosophy and beliefs of how to work with and teach our students. Every student is capable of learning what their heart desires. As educators, we are researchers; we learn about our students, discovering how we can create an emergent curriculum based on their needs and interests along with meeting state and national standards. Loris Malaguzzi, the founder of the Reggio approach, believed that the child should be the focus of the curriculum. That we need to follow their lead on what they want to learn, how they learn best, and to urge them to keep on creating and inventing. Children are so incredibly capable, and it is our job as teachers and educators to offer the tools to our students as they need them, and to show them that they are competent and gifted in their own way. They can create their own learning and education, with our guidance and respect to their interests and needs. I know that this will be harder in a public elementary school setting, however, I am determined to be in tune with how all of my students learn, what their interests are, and how we can incorporate big, hands-on learning projects along the way. Learning by doing is monumental. Also, as I can personally attest to, the value of a real-life experience compared to something you read from a textbook or workbook, is substantially unparalleled.
I have also studied and learned from my time at Peopleplace how important the learning environment is to our students. The classroom environment is believed to be the third teacher. It needs to fully support the learning of the child and encourage a child to be excited to learn more. I understand the power of documentation and reflection for both the students and myself. It is so important for students to see their growth, the growth of others, and to be able to talk about their past experiences in a positive way. The classroom is the place where children spend most of their days, I believe it needs to be an aesthetically pleasing, comfortable, engaging, non-distractive, learning and working environment. I want parents to be able to see the work that their child has done, and I want their child to be able to proudly go up to their work and enjoy the hard work and accomplishments they have made. I also will strive to make my classroom as least restrictive as possible, a universal learning environment for all of my students' learning needs. I want my classroom to look different every year because my students will change every year. Even if I work in a multi-age classroom, my first graders will not be the same as second graders, they will have developed and grown so much and I want their classroom to grow along with them.
I want my students to learn about each other through multicultural exploration by bringing music, language and culture into the classroom. I will teach my students about what it means to live in America. The amazing opportunities that we have, that we all come from different homes and origins, and have different backgrounds and histories. That us is what makes America so wonderful. Every classroom is its own little "melting-pot" and I want my students to learn to be respectful to everyone, no matter the differences we have. We are all working and learning together, we must learn to support each other in this journey.
Every student learns differently, this is a challenge every educator faces. How do I teach children based on their unique intelligences? There are many different types of intelligences, as we learned from Howard Gardner, that being said, it is my job to listen and learn about my students. To realize their developmental stage or level, to be aware of their natural, amazing intelligences, to support them and challenge them no matter where they are in their developmentally. We have to meet our students where they are, and support them going forward, never holding them back from greatness.
"Treat people the way you want to be treated" was written on the wall in my K-2 multi-age classroom and I always think back to that and how important it is to respect each other. Respecting others and their own diversity will be constantly enforced in my classroom. I only want my students to feel safe and able to focus on their education. If they gain anything from my teaching is that they gain clarity of how important it is to learn. I want to learn so much from the experiences we have in my classroom, constantly adapting and bettering myself as an educator. I want my students to know that I learn from them as much as they learn from me.
"Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself." - John Dewey
Reminiscing now, it is so clear that this is the profession I want to spend the rest of my life doing. It took me a long time to decide exactly what I wanted to teach, or in what capacity, but I finally and very happily landed on studying early elementary education and working as an early childhood educator while going to school at University of Maine at Augusta.
Having the chance to go to a University is something so many young people in this world won't get but desperately desire. Sadly, some of todays generation will just turn that opportunity down. Education leads to endless possibilities, so why say no to that? I am determined to be an Early Elementary school teacher because I want to start from the beginning with my students. I want my students to feel motivated to be successful, confident, but most importantly happy and positive learners. I want them to always be proud of what they can do, and to never settle for anything other than their very best. Finally, I want my students to never stop asking questions. Without the courage to ask why or how, we won't learn anything more than what is spelled out for us. I want my students to question rules and methods so that they know why they are important to follow or maybe they can be the catalysts for changing the way that they learn. If they learn to question everything early on, then hopefully they won't hold back later in life.
During my time at UMA I studied John Dewey, the founder of Progressivism. Progressivism, at the time of it's foundation, was a more radical yet constant-changing method, a student-centered philosophy. After reading his ideologies and methods, I instantly wished that that was how my curriculum had been run. One challenge I faced in school was not that I fell behind in the classroom and failed, but that I was ignored by a lot of my teachers. I was an average student, earning B's and C's in my classes. The saddest part is that I can't remember more than a couple of teachers who actually asked if I needed more help because they did see promise in me. Ultimately, I then found myself not wanting to try harder than what it took to pass my classes. That would be my biggest fear as a teacher. I will not let that happen to my students.
Between the time I started my Early Elementary Education minor at UMA and working at Peopleplace Cooperative preschool, I knew that I absolutely synched and believed in a student-centered philosophy. In fall 2013 I wrote, "As a teacher, I will encourage my students to help others and adjust the classroom curricula around that, while always making sure my students feel that they have received enough instruction, attention and care from me. My goal for them is to be always willing to learn more, to always be excited for what's next for them and to never stop asking questions. I will assess how they have learned through projects they complete. I won't give out standardized tests, besides state required tests if necessary. I want to urge students to write or draw stories. A creative outlet for the students without the pressure of an exam with questions. I will make it a point to make sure my students are able to follow through with the written standards given by the state. I won't let any student feel ignored because their grades are average. Every student is exceptional in my eyes, thus every student will be treated and assessed equally and fair." Looking back now, almost four years later, after almost three years as a preschool teacher, I can still say honestly that still rings true to me, but with a more confident approach.
Working at Peopleplace Cooperative preschool has been, and always will be, the job that changed me, challenged me, and made me have such a strong love for working with children. I have learned so much about what it means to be a caring, devoted, honest educator. Personally, I think that the reason why I grew so much as an adult, while working with three to five-year-olds, has been working with and studying the Reggio Emilia philosophy. I can honestly say that when I describe my philosophy of education, it will be solely based around Reggio Emilia.
Learning the methods and philosophy of Reggio Emilia has shaped my personal teaching philosophy and beliefs of how to work with and teach our students. Every student is capable of learning what their heart desires. As educators, we are researchers; we learn about our students, discovering how we can create an emergent curriculum based on their needs and interests along with meeting state and national standards. Loris Malaguzzi, the founder of the Reggio approach, believed that the child should be the focus of the curriculum. That we need to follow their lead on what they want to learn, how they learn best, and to urge them to keep on creating and inventing. Children are so incredibly capable, and it is our job as teachers and educators to offer the tools to our students as they need them, and to show them that they are competent and gifted in their own way. They can create their own learning and education, with our guidance and respect to their interests and needs. I know that this will be harder in a public elementary school setting, however, I am determined to be in tune with how all of my students learn, what their interests are, and how we can incorporate big, hands-on learning projects along the way. Learning by doing is monumental. Also, as I can personally attest to, the value of a real-life experience compared to something you read from a textbook or workbook, is substantially unparalleled.
I have also studied and learned from my time at Peopleplace how important the learning environment is to our students. The classroom environment is believed to be the third teacher. It needs to fully support the learning of the child and encourage a child to be excited to learn more. I understand the power of documentation and reflection for both the students and myself. It is so important for students to see their growth, the growth of others, and to be able to talk about their past experiences in a positive way. The classroom is the place where children spend most of their days, I believe it needs to be an aesthetically pleasing, comfortable, engaging, non-distractive, learning and working environment. I want parents to be able to see the work that their child has done, and I want their child to be able to proudly go up to their work and enjoy the hard work and accomplishments they have made. I also will strive to make my classroom as least restrictive as possible, a universal learning environment for all of my students' learning needs. I want my classroom to look different every year because my students will change every year. Even if I work in a multi-age classroom, my first graders will not be the same as second graders, they will have developed and grown so much and I want their classroom to grow along with them.
I want my students to learn about each other through multicultural exploration by bringing music, language and culture into the classroom. I will teach my students about what it means to live in America. The amazing opportunities that we have, that we all come from different homes and origins, and have different backgrounds and histories. That us is what makes America so wonderful. Every classroom is its own little "melting-pot" and I want my students to learn to be respectful to everyone, no matter the differences we have. We are all working and learning together, we must learn to support each other in this journey.
Every student learns differently, this is a challenge every educator faces. How do I teach children based on their unique intelligences? There are many different types of intelligences, as we learned from Howard Gardner, that being said, it is my job to listen and learn about my students. To realize their developmental stage or level, to be aware of their natural, amazing intelligences, to support them and challenge them no matter where they are in their developmentally. We have to meet our students where they are, and support them going forward, never holding them back from greatness.
"Treat people the way you want to be treated" was written on the wall in my K-2 multi-age classroom and I always think back to that and how important it is to respect each other. Respecting others and their own diversity will be constantly enforced in my classroom. I only want my students to feel safe and able to focus on their education. If they gain anything from my teaching is that they gain clarity of how important it is to learn. I want to learn so much from the experiences we have in my classroom, constantly adapting and bettering myself as an educator. I want my students to know that I learn from them as much as they learn from me.
"Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself." - John Dewey