In terms of my teaching philosophy within the classroom, I believe that it is a teacher’s responsibilities to equip his or her students with the skills and knowledge to succeed in life. I champion collaborative learning because a key part of being successful in life is learning from other people, and in order to learn from others one must have good interpersonal skills. I would like to provide my students with as many opportunities for group work us possible so that they can learn from their peers and practice good teamwork skills. I think that by working with their peers, students can be exposed to viewpoints other than their own, and they can then either adopt their peers’ viewpoints or learn to respectfully disagree.
As a teacher in a classroom, I think the qualities that I have to offer are a true passion for the class content, and a genuine desire to connect with my students. As many students during my CFE said on my last day at the school, they could truly appreciate my bubbly personality and my eagerness to engage them in the class activities. In terms of my struggles, I think I still need to work on being more confident and authoritative when giving instructions and reprimanding students when they are out of line. I’m still exploring how to be benevolent yet authoritative when I need to be.
With regard to learning that reaches beyond the walls of the classroom, I think it is important for students to be involved with extracurricular activities that give them the opportunity to be who they are without being judged, and that allow them to feel like they are part of a community. In my own education experience, I have found that while learning inside the classroom is crucial, much of my learning has come from being involved in extracurricular activities that taught me how to work well with others and gave me a sense of belonging to the school community. I realize that students first have to enjoy going to school before they are willing to participate in sports and clubs, which is why I want to build a sense of trust and belonging in my own classroom and then encourage my students to venture beyond the classroom.
