My philosophy of teaching is above all else to ensure that my students develop skills and strategies to succeed not only in my class, but in many other areas of life as well. I believe that the purpose of education is to prepare students to be critical consumers of knowledge in their everyday lives. I want my classroom to be a safe place where my students can feel free to explore their inquiries and make mistakes. I want my students to feel free to take risks, because making mistakes and being able to explain why they happened is a very valuable learning process. I aim to engender a desire for life-long learning in my students, and guide them on how to think critically in order to facilitate this learning.

I believe that everyone is capable of learning, and for this learning to be most effective, students must be able to make connections between the material and their past experiences as well as their interests. It is up to me, as their teacher, to help my students make these connections, and to provide opportunities to make new information immediately useful whenever possible. I want my class to be a space where everyone – including and especially me – is learning together and from one another. Critical thinking, problem-solving skills, and a growth mindset are the most valuable skills I can foster in my students.

As previously mentioned, I want my students to learn how to think for themselves, and not take everything at face-value. Our students are used to being bombarded with an enormous amount of information every day, all day long. They have to use selective attention to retain the bits and pieces that are interesting to them, and ignore the rest. Even then, they might be relying solely on article headlines for their main source of news. I want my students to learn how to take news headlines with a grain of salt, do their own research, recognize reputable sources of information, and critically reflect on the information that they are exposed to. There are so many exciting, controversial topics that come up in each area of home economics (e.g. cohabitation before marriage, genetically modified organisms, and the implications of fast fashion) that can provide opportunities for students to explore multiple views around the issues. It is so important to me that my students leave my courses with enough knowledge to not fall into the next fad diet, or end a relationship based on advice in a magazine. I believe that knowledge is power, and giving my students the tools to seek out reputable knowledge claims is one of the best things I can do to prepare them for their lives outside of school.

I teach my subject, home economics, because I believe that it is a tremendously practical subject area which teaches real-world skills that students can use at home, at work, and in everyday life. It’s also a non-threatening environment where students can make mistakes without being seriously penalized for them. Mixing up steps on a recipe probably won’t ruin the dish, students just need to adapt and find a solution to rectify the situation. Students learn best through experience – actually physically doing things encourages them to engage with the material, question it, and solve problems. I desire to educate my students in home economics on how to create healthier, more fulfilling lives for themselves and for their families. I will do this by providing opportunities for them to practice critical thinking and give them projects which require problem solving, taking risks, and making mistakes.