My Philosophy of Education

I believe that every child has the right to a quality education and that too many children are being cheated out of this opportunity day after day and year after year. I believe teachers are a key element in changing the discrepancies in the public education system. While every child deserves a quality education, no single person can be fully credited or blamed for the quality of education a child receives. Just as the African proverb says, “It takes a village to raise a child,” I believe that it takes an entire community to provide the kind of education that will allow children to develop into the best possible person they can be. I believe that we, as a community of learning (teacher, parents, child, peers, and community-at-large), are responsible for teaching children the skills needed to succeed after their formal education is complete (i.e. competency in math, reading, science, computer literacy). While certain members of the learning community have more influence over education than others, we need to remember that our end result is to come together to foster the best future for each child.

I agree with Maslow that students learn best when their basic needs are satisfied (Khanna, 2010). As a teacher, I cannot control what happens in students’ lives outside of school in regards to meeting their physiological needs. However, I have the responsibility to make sure that my classroom provides a physically and emotionally safe place to learn and grow. Providing structure and routine is part of creating a safe learning environment, and it is integral in increasing students’ ability to learn. When a safe environment based on routine is established, students can be at their best and can be active participants in their own education.

The teacher ought to play a vital role not only in helping to fill students’ impressionable minds with knowledge, but also to instill in them a desire to learn after they leave the classroom. I feel that if a child leaves my class without wanting to learn more, it is my fault as the teacher. However, I cannot expect students to learn if I am not an active learner myself. I must continue to cultivate my education on my own, but I also must continue to grow as a teacher by learning from my students. In order to create a quality learning environment, I must adapt my teaching and the subject matter to the diversity of needs in my classroom.

I agree with Piaget (Dhir, 2007) and Vygotsky (Parrish, 2009) that children learn both through being active and through social interaction. Students bring a wealth of diversity into the classroom – different learning styles, different life experiences, and different cultural backgrounds. Each ought to be welcomed into the classroom and have an opportunity to learn from each other’s uniqueness. It is the teacher’s responsibility to highlight elements of diversity in order to foster that kind of learning environment – one where I may be the main teacher, but I am not the only teacher.

One of the greatest experiences in the world is to see a child work his or her way through a problem and to see the joy he or she gets from learning. That moment can light a fire in a student to desire more and more knowledge. I, as a teacher, have a responsibility to create an environment and foster a community that ensures that students have the opportunity to build the best possible future for themselves through education.

References

Dhir, R.N. (2007). Educational Psychology. Chandighar, India: Global Media.

Khanna, P.K. (2010). Educational Psychology. Jaipur, India: ABD Publishers.

Parrish, M. (2009). Social Work Perspectives on Human Behavior. Maidenhead, Great Britain:

McGraw-Hill Education.