I believe in efficiency in accomplishing and reaching our goals.\u00a0 Whether this involves being able to solve a simple math equation or decide on a moral issue concerning our society, my belief is in reaching a solution in the most effective and accurate possible means.\u00a0 This is reflected in my teaching strategy by analytically approaching any problems to learning and devising a possible solution logically and systematically.<\/p>\n
From a social aspect, my first and foremost belief is centered on equality and fairness.\u00a0 I believe in displaying equal representation, equal and fair treatment of every individual, and appropriate consequences.\u00a0 In focusing on these values, I bring the ideas of democracy and legal justice into the classroom from a kindergarten environment to upper secondary levels.<\/p>\n
Through the combination of these two main beliefs, it is my hope for my students to become upstanding citizens who are able to excel in one or more areas of expertise.\u00a0 To reach this standard, I plan on structuring my lessons around group work.\u00a0 With a set of classroom rules and expectations established from the beginning of the year, I believe that guided teamwork is an incredibly valuable experience in learning equality and fairness.\u00a0 By focusing on teamwork and scaffolding of knowledge between students, my classroom environment also fosters a natural identification of personal strengths.\u00a0 These strengths are then developed through class work in heterogeneous groups that encourage specialized roles for each individual.\u00a0 I believe that teamwork is a means to efficiently accomplish any goal whether in school or in life.<\/p>\n
I recognize that the importance of teaching students is not only in teaching information from the required subject areas.\u00a0 It is still not only teaching students to understand and interpret the social topics in our society.\u00a0 To me, teaching is educating, that is, allowing students to come to their own conclusions and realizations on their paths to becoming their own individuals.\u00a0 It is with their own individual perceptions that my students will grow to make decisions based on their own beliefs and values rather than mirroring or following anyone else\u2019s.<\/p>\n
It is with this philosophy that I have evolved my way of teaching through my teaching experience.\u00a0 Looking back and reflecting on when I first stepped into a classroom on my first day at practicum, I was very much a transmissive teacher.\u00a0 I aimed to transmit my knowledge to the students, model my expectations, and finally assess their ability to understand my expectations and reiterate the information.\u00a0 From a functional view, my students were taught information and they learned a certain fraction of that information.\u00a0 However, I noticed as the term went on that although my class was excellent at producing work that I expected and wanted, I was rarely seeing originality from the classwork.\u00a0 I came to the realization that I needed to allow more freedom in expressing and finding one\u2019s own ideas.\u00a0 To encourage this behaviour in my students, I began to teach with more emphasis on inquiry-based approach.\u00a0 Instead of providing the correct answer to students who asked, I answered with prompting questions that allowed the student to reach one step closer to the answer.\u00a0 Rather than model the \u201ccorrect\u201d final product, I began to delay this modelling process until later into the lesson.\u00a0 As expected, I observed more instances of original solutions and initiatives from my class.\u00a0 Unexpectedly though, the students showed signs of becoming more confident in their own thoughts and there was a much higher level of engagement than before.\u00a0 This was proof to me that an inquiry-based approach is a more effective mode of learning than the transmissive method.\u00a0 Thus, I plan to incorporate more inquiry-based learning into lessons until another superior teaching technique is observed.\u00a0 When that time comes, I know that my students are benefiting and that I\u2019ll be performing my mission as a teacher.<\/p>\n
For the time being, I will remember that, in the word of Swiss philosopher Henri- <\/em>Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric<\/em> <\/em>Amiel, \u201cTo know how to suggest is the art of teaching\u201d.<\/p>\n I believe in efficiency in accomplishing and reaching our goals.\u00a0 Whether this involves being able to solve a simple math equation or decide on a moral issue concerning our society, my belief is in reaching a solution in the most … Continue reading ![\"\"](\"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/ang1\/files\/2009\/09\/bookworm21.gif\")
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