Educational Philosophy

Teaching and learning in the classroom is usually broken down into one of two categories. The  first is the transmission of knowledge, which believes that ‘learning results from forces that are external to the individual.’ The second is the construction of knowledge, and it ‘emphasizes the individual’s experiences.’ Rather than focusing on one or the other, I think it is important to bring both methods into the classroom. This allows for teachers to relay necessary information to their students, to guide them through the learning process but also leaves room for the student to approach the process as an individual and take their own experiences into consideration. Teaching and learning go hand in hand and both are vital components to an effective classroom.

A teacher’s view on students has a huge effect on how they will teach their classroom. In order to be successful, a teacher must believe that every student has a future and that it is their job to help the student get there. Students need discipline and support, not another best friend. Students need someone they can trust and look up to, not someone that views them as a waste of time. Students need their teachers to believe in them and encourage them to be the best version of themselves that they can be, not someone who makes it a point to show how much they don’t care. Teachers have more impact than they realize and need to remember that it is the student who matters. Whether it is kindergarten or high school, every student needs to know that someone cares and is taking the time to show it.

Knowledge can be described in many ways, all of them valid in their own way. Some days, knowledge is being able to add two plus two, others, understanding how a system works and even others, having an intelligent conversation. How a teacher views knowledge on a personal level greatly effects how they convey knowledge to their students. My personal belief is that when a student understands a concept, whether they know the specific terminology or not, they have gained knowledge that can be applied to areas of life outside the classroom, thus even increasing the knowledge they started with. Subjects such as math or history require students to learn numbers and dates, but without a strong understanding of this information, it will get forgotten and ultimately become useless.

The world is full of information and every individual has a different view on what is worth knowing. Social skills, reason and communication are some of the most useful skills a student can learn, mainly because every situation they will find themselves in for the rest of their lives will involve people. When a student has a strong set of social skills they will be able to excel in the real world whether it be a job, relationships or the average school setting. When a student can reason well, they will always have a way to find an answer to a problem even if they don’t realize it at first. When a student can communicate effectively, they will be able to work well with others to get things done. As a teacher, one should focus on providing their students with life long skill sets as a way of preparing them to be successful in the real world.

A teacher’s philosophy on education will determine several things about how they run a classroom. In my studies thus far, I have found that my personal approach to teaching is a strong mix of essentialism and existentialism. The essentialist part of me believes that there are certain intellectual and moral standards that all students should be taught while the existential part holds that individual choice is just as important to the cultivation of the student mind. These two philosophies paired together ground students in basic skills and tradition but also allow for students to apply their own meaning and determine how they will apply this knowledge to better themselves. This approach to teaching makes the classroom a safe place for all students to learn no matter their leaning capabilities.