!

Jordan Luty

3 Jun. 2021

Enhanced Philosophy of Education

1. Purpose of Teaching

I have always loved sharing my knowledge and seeing how efficiently I can share

information. Nowadays, that manifests itself in teaching friends board games, or my parents

technology, or how to sign up for a vaccine appointment, and (of course) how to behave in the

classroom.

When I began this course, I viewed education with a naive sense of wonder and

excitement; my experience in the classroom was limited, having been thrown into a full-time

teaching position due to Covid that I was unqualified for. However, this long-term music

substitute position allowed me to develop my initial methods with teaching and a motivation to

enroll in KSU to become the best teacher I could. This MAT course has helped mold my

ambition into a drive to foster high achieving and empathetic people to share the world with.

Though I am unsure of my intended position in teaching (elementary, secondary, or a ‘special’

course), I am certain that I strive to be an inclusive instructor who develops children’s moral

character, personality, creativity, knowledge, and skills.

2. Foundations of Education

After exploring many different philosophies of education through this course and having

exposure to Finland’s academic restructuring from my book circle text, I find that my philosophy

of education aligns best with Progressivism and Social Reconstructionism. After reading through

Finnish Lessons 2.0, I am enthralled with peruskoulu schools and a staunch believer that the
 !2

“future is Finnish” or at least contains some semblance of their educational restructuring from

the 1970’s-90’s. One main element that I Figure 1.1

especially connected with in my reading

was Finland’s increase in national equity in

education and the positive results it had in

their PISA scores. In figure 1.1, a

connection is shown between an increase in

equity and a decrease in grade repetition.

Sahlberg, P. (2015). Finnish Lessons 2.0: What
This, of course, shows that their education Can the World Learn from Educational Change in
Finland?. Teachers College Press.
level was increasing, but it also had the

effect of creating economic efficiency. It is very costly for students to repeat grades, and by

increasing the national equity in America, we can cut our spending as well. Finland achieved

higher equity through many means, but a main one was eliminating private schools; every

academic institution in Finland is publicly funded, and each child, regardless of socioeconomic

background receives a similarly strong education. Private schools often lead to segregation and

inequality in student achievement, and all schools should be funded in accordance with their

needs to cope with inequalities. This focus on student diversification while increasing national

equity aligns with Social Reconstructionism because we should teach (and challenge) our

students to become “change agents” to make our society better for all, and we need to restructure

our society in order to provide this.

 !3

3. Understanding of Teaching and Learning

Only recently, I’ve discovered my love for relating to different types of learners. I think

tailoring education and lessons to each individual is imperative to being a great educator, and I

always found it to be incredibly reassuring and impressive when a faculty member mentioned

that they learned from me while I was supposed to be in the “student” role. In my opinion, the

teacher/student relationship should be more cooperative than one-sided, and I find it motivating

to be challenged with relating information to a student who is struggling to learn.

Relating to all students so they feel motivated to learn and challenge themselves is

something that teachers continuously struggle with. Intrinsic motivation is key to high achieving,

life-long learners, and to encourage this, we must relate to student interest and curiosity. As

teachers, it is our responsibility to welcome children into our society and progress them into the

coming challenges and benefits of modern culture, applications, and technology. Students today

are learning in a completely new environment than 15 years ago, perhaps the most fast-paced and

certainly the most advanced society ever. As children become increasingly technologically

proficient, we must realize the practical and educational applications that these technologies can

have. Students are doing more learning outside of the classroom with social media and accessible

information, and this should be encouraged in order to foster continued curiosity. As I learned in

the beginning of this course, students have a broad range of intelligences, with some more

developed in each individual. Integrating technology into curricula is a great way to cover

multiple intelligences, but it does not check every box. In order to actively engage all of my

students, I will incorporate Progressivism by providing assignments and discussions that

 !4

encourage critical thinking and provide a sense of community, cooperation, and democratic

equality.

4. Classroom Environment

Ultimately, I want to educate good people first and strong musicians/mathematicians/

linguists/citizens/students second. With depression and anxiety on the rise as well as political

divisiveness, a downward trend in empathy has been apparent to me in our society. I had many

educators in all facets of my life growing up that made me who I am, and I want to be that

person for others.

Creating a community of learners that limits disruptions and time off-task is something

hard for me to speculate about. Of course, I can hypothesize that certain methods will work based

on results that other educators have had, but I look forward to discovering techniques of my own

that foster positive behaviors in my students. I anticipate the practicum and student teaching

semester included in this degree will be particularly impactful in the development of my

“classroom environment.” After reading through the results that applying multiple intelligences

had on classrooms, this will be the first method I will implement in mine. Chapter 1 of our iBook

stated that applying the multiple intelligences theory resulted in better behavior in and out of the

classroom, increased cooperative skills, and changed the role of the teacher to become more

facilitative rather than directive (Perez, 2016). I plan to vary my instruction to relate to diverse

types of learners, which will in turn create a community of zealous learners. I also loved the free

rewards document included in the modules for this course, as I think incentivizing good behavior

in the classroom can be extremely impactful and efficient. However, this can shift the focus away
 !5

from learning to a results-based curricula, which I will bear in mind when planning lessons and

rewards.

5. Inclusiveness

I recently reached out to a high school teacher I had, who I always thought was

stupendous. When I was writing her letter, I was able to articulate why I had so much respect for

her: She welcomed each individual student to her class with open arms and an inquisitive mind,

opting to teach the information in dynamic ways rather than established patterns. Each year, she

did new experiments, new assignments, new… icebreakers. Because of this, she learned right

along with her students, and each student felt empowered and integral to the course. In my future

teaching career, I would love to emulate Ms. Heintz (my former teacher) as much as possible and

continue to learn for the rest of my life.

As I wrote in my initial philosophy of education, I plan to continue learning throughout my

career in order to better relate to a diverse group of learners. In order to support diverse cultures

and their communities, I must be receptive to change and aware of my environment and biases.

Recently, a school I was employed with had a high percentage of Black and Hispanic students,

which prompted me to have questions about my own privilege and how I could teach with a

culturally responsive classroom so that all of my diverse students felt respected and equally

educated. This course has helped me realize different examples of deculturalization that these

communities have endured through the American education system. Teachers must remember

that race and culture are integral to a student’s identity, and acting as if race is not a factor in

children’s lives only diminishes student individuality and subconsciously contributes to

 !6

educational deculturalization. Looking at Postmodernism, I agree that diversity, inclusion, and

multiplicity are essential, given how varied American students have become. I plan to challenge

the norms of our society’s inequalities in my classroom and provide equity in all curricula (in

gender, sexuality, race, ethnicity, and nationalism). I will advocate for my students and their

families in various ways, but by using the methods above and by becoming as informed about

my classroom makeup as possible, I will be able to make as much impact as possible.