My teaching philosophy is based upon the importance of knowing my students and holistically fostering their intellectual, social and emotional growth by providing them with enriching experiences. I believe in building learning communities for lifelong learning where students can bring their experiences and foster both their learning and the collective learning of the classroom. Furthermore, social, emotional and physical safety are of the utmost importance to me.
Based on my Teaching Perspectives Inventory (TPI), my strongest quality as a teacher is that I have a nurturing perspective on teaching. This perspective is meant to foster relationships, encourage exploration and mistakes and creating an atmosphere where the kids wanted to come back. This feeling of community is important to me. I believe that if I can create a supportive and nurturing classroom, I will also be able to address students through developmental and apprenticeship perspectives where students will learn in realistic environments that allow for the transfer of knowledge while also increasing complexity to suit the needs of the learners.
During my practicum experience I was able to implement aspects of my philosophy by arriving in class early and opening the class to students before and after class as a safe space for them. Also, I made myself available to coach multiple sports teams at my practicum school which supported my ideas towards community within my school environment. Lastly, during one of my lessons I invited students into a conversation about their own personal histories through the exploration of First People’s history in Canada using a beaded timeline. This activity allowed me to share about my own history which invited my students to share their histories. This was a rewarding experience which encouraged the development of relationships in my classroom and also helped to develop a feeling of community.
