My philosophy of teaching design and technology is derived from my journey leading up to becoming a teacher. As I matured, I reflected upon my experiences as a student and a teacher and concluded that I want make a difference in someone’s life.

As an educator, I want to appeal to those who feel as if they are unsuccessful for any reason and guide them towards what they personally define as success. Teaching design and technology provides me the opportunity to lead students to various pathways and identify a variety of strengths and weaknesses a student may have. This can be easily initiated by using a wide array of teaching techniques and assessments for class. If I can successfully keep my lessons relevant and varied, the students will be able to find the best way for them to learn and succeed as an individual.

A teacher is responsible for more than content knowledge. Often, they act as an additional “parent” for the students and account for their social-emotional well being. Although not every teacher will demonstrate a high level of care, I’d like to be a stand out in that category as I find creating social connections to be one of my strengths. This starts with extra-curricular activities and I found myself enjoying organized sports and sponsoring major events for students.

Mr. Tabak, my socials studies teacher, subtly injected himself into several aspects of my school life and it was incredible to me that I did not appreciate his efforts until I graduated. He supported students in a variety of extra curricular activities throughout the year. In respect to teaching, he kept his content interesting with great delivery and guided the class in a way that self motivation was constant. I’d like to incorporate these attributes into my teaching and keep my classroom environment to a minimal stress location that students can unwind. For example, I have small puzzle games and projects that I keep around in my room for the students. If they’re having a bad day, they can take some time to work on the puzzles or smaller projects instead of plugging in and disconnecting from all class activity. In design and technology, I’d like to provide opportunities for the students to learn what they choose, with guidance, and to enjoy what they are learning. I sampled this method of teaching during my practicum, where all the students had to complete the same, first project, as a baseline for us to determine their current level of skill. The students then went on to do variations of a seconded guided project, which included elements of prescribed learning outcomes but with their own designs and input into the final project.

As a teacher, I want to act as a mentor for my students. My students will be able to self assess their strengths and weaknesses and appropriate their education accordingly. They will become self-regulated learners. Myself, as the mentor, I’d like to learn with the students and contribute to their personal growth as well as education. ADST curriculum has a lot of inherent freedoms which grants me the chance to reflect my practices and beliefs as the curriculum can be tailored to specific classes. Projects deliver a sense of accomplishment in tangible products and progress in skills and techniques is clear to see. In my classroom, I’d like to emphasize on progress, not perfection.