Philosophy of Education

During the fall of 2016, I taught in a diverse, low socioeconomic elementary school as a
teacher assistant. Every week I pulled a group of fourth graders out of class to administer a
weekly reading assessment. Unfortunately these mandatory assessments were not well received
by the students. One Friday morning, one of my fourth graders was particularly determined that
she was not going to take the test. I began to talk with her about trying her best, a conversation
we had had many times before. Suddenly she looked up at me and said, “Miss G, I ain’t gunna
take that test, I ain’t gunna get another 50%.” In that simple change in wording, I instantly
realized the larger issue at hand. The fight she put up every week wasn’t because she didn’t want
to work, but rather because she felt too discouraged to succeed. Her simple words still resound
with me today as they etched in my mind the importance of identifying and responding to the
motivation​ behind students’ actions. Throughout the rest of the semester I focused on developing
this student’s confidence in the classroom by building a relationship with her and fostering a
growth mindset mentality, two practices that have become pillars of my teaching philosophy.
Getting to know my students enables me to teach more effectively as it allows me to
understand what motivates them and anticipate where their prior knowledge lies and where my
instruction should begin. Connecting with each student about something specifically important to
them within the first couple days of school is a personal goal of mine. I actively engage in candid
“check-in” conversations throughout each day, as well as intentional activities, such as a lunch
buddies program. Lunch buddies is a program in which I have a classroom ‘picnic’ with a few
students each week to get to know them as individuals, and not just students. By ​showing
genuine interest in my students, I demonstrate that I am an adult who cares, who wants them to
succeed, and who is trustworthy. Building trust with students is crucial because learning requires
students to be vulnerable, and in order to become vulnerable, a student must feel safe.
Incorporating purpose is also an integral part of my teaching practice. In every project,
assignment, and discussion we have, I attempt to tie in real-life examples, service learning
initiatives, or pertinent community matters to expand the classroom walls to the realm of the
world in which we live. I include students’ passions in lessons whenever possible because
passionate learners are motivated to think critically and critical thinkers will become capable
global citizens. Presenting content in the context of students’ everyday lives or inviting them to
change their perspective on a topic makes learning memorable and enables students to
effectively form connections between new and old schemas. When assigning projects, I offer
different project types whenever possible with the condition that students are able defend the
thinking their work demonstrates. By consistently instilling a sense of purpose when conducting
class, I encourage students to focus on their thinking and take ownership of their work.
As students’ interactions greatly influences the class environment, I also work to promote
healthy relationships between students. I am honest, trustworthy, and respectful to my students in
efforts to model how important these values are in building a supportive community. These
values are promoted through restorative circles and an active bystander program called Secret
Operative Student, or SOS. Students can write an ‘SOS’ on a slip paper if they notice something
wrong in class and leave it on my desk anonymously. Students who write an SOS may not know
how the issue they wrote about is resolved, but it’s a way for each student to play a role in
developing the kind of class environment they want. If an SOS describes a classwide problem, it
might be resolved through talking in a restorative circle. Restorative circles are open discussions
where all students can freely share their thoughts on a topic, whether it be for community
building or to resolve a class issue. Restorative circles are great opportunities for students to
practice effective communication skills and enact the idea of listening to understand, not just
respond. Building a class community based on honesty, trust, and respect enables these type of
class discussions to be possible. These values also foster an environment conducive for
collaboration, a common practice in my classroom as learning is a social endeavor. Collaboration
prompts students to explore different perspectives, allowing them to gain a deeper understanding
of content. Both collaboration and class discussions promote an inclusive environment and teach
students how to work effectively with others, a critical life-long skill.
Centered at the heart of my classroom community is a growth mindset mentality. To
instill a growth mindset mentality among my students, I emphasize the importance of effort as a
way to work towards meaningful growth. By giving specific positive feedback, I highlight
student improvement, persistence, and hard work. As the emphasis is on effort, rather than
intelligence alone, mistakes and failures in my class are deemed as opportunities to learn.
Students feel comfortable knowing that mistakes are okay and are more inclined to take risks in
their learning. Anyone who walks into my classroom can see the emphasis I place on growth
mindset in the visible thinking posters and student work showcased around the room.
I also understand that sometimes in order to meet a student where they are at, it is crucial
to address their psychological needs prior to moving onto academic content. I offer students
resources to work through any emotional troubles they are experiencing. These resources range
from talking to me to establishing a class recovery corner. If I feel a recovery corner is
necessary, students can spend a few minutes there to listen to calming music and write about
what’s bothering them. This corner is never designated as a “time-out” to avoid stigmatizing it
and allows students to take a quick break from class to regroup themselves.
In keeping with positive classroom management, I implement a warm demander
approach when addressing behavioral problems. Through exercising a warm demander approach
and establishing relationships of trust with my students, I demonstrate to students that I have
faith in their abilities, empowering them to give nothing less than their best. When behavior
problems arise, I handle them with respect and care. To preserve a student’s dignity, I address
problems individually as often as possible. If a problem needs to be addressed during whole class
instruction, I address it mindfully through proximity control, eye contact, or verbal signals and
ensure I talk with the student individually later. If students make poor choices, I offer logical
consequences to help them understand the effects of their actions as well as personal
responsibility. If I need to further differentiate classroom management, I create specialized
behavior plans as necessary for students who need extra support in maintaining appropriate
behavior. These plans only focus on a few specific behavior expectations at a time so that
students have a manageable goal. I motivate students to abide by these behavior expectations
with intrinsic rewards, demonstrating that responsibility leads to greater privileges.
In an effort to help all students develop good habits, I implement a comforting sense of
structure in my classroom. Routines and known expectations aid in fostering good habits, as well
as a safe, supportive environment. I have daily routines as well as instructional routines so that
students know what to expect throughout the day. My instructional routines follow an “I do, we
do, you do” gradual release model, allowing me to scaffold student understanding, as well as
model appropriate student responses to my instructional requests.