Orientation

WEEK 1 SCHOOL VMGO

Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

What is a teaching philosophy?

A teaching philosophy is a set of beliefs concerning
the practice of pedagogy and the process of learning.
The expression of a teaching philosophy often takes
the form of an essay or a verbal response, usually in
the context of a cover letter or response to an
interview question. In it, an educator states their core
education principles, discusses a rationale for each
and provides practical examples to support their
beliefs.
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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

What is a teaching philosophy?

A teaching philosophy is your beliefs, ethics

and principles regarding teaching. It has likely
been developed over time through hands-on
teaching experience, education, observations
and research. A philosophy sums up your
approach to teaching and guides you in the
day-to-day situations that come up in the
classroom.
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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

What is a teaching philosophy?

If you’re unsure of your teaching philosophy, consider
asking yourself the following:
• What teachers/educators have inspired me?
• What is my approach when a student or employee is
struggling?
• How do I reward good behavior? How do I address bad
behavior?
• What standards do I hold myself to?
• What have been my most successful teaching moments?
• What would my students or employees say about me?
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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

Tips in writing a teaching philosophy

Begin simply with one or two sentences

that neatly encapsulate your thinking.
Then elaborate on what your philosophy
means in practical terms. Then include an
example of how you apply your teaching
philosophy in the classroom. This will help
make your philosophy even more
concrete.
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Philosophy and Principles LIS SPT 4Prelim Week 2
of Teaching

Samples of a teaching philosophy

Example 1
I believe the classroom is a living community and that
everyone, from the principal to the students to the parents,
must contribute in order to maintain a positive
atmosphere.

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Philosophy and Principles LIS SPT 4Prelim Week 2
of Teaching

Samples of a teaching philosophy

Why It Works:
This statement is simple, straightforward, and easy to
absorb. It takes a position, the classroom is a living
community and everyone contributes, and conveys it well.
While you don’t need to fit everything you believe about
teaching into a single sentence, it’s important to be able to
express the most central part of your ideas and priorities as
a teacher.
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Philosophy and Principles LIS SPT 4Prelim Week 2
of Teaching

Samples of a teaching philosophy

Example 2
All students are individuals, and everyone learns in their
own unique way. I use multiple methods of teaching
(linguistic, visual, auditory, kinesthetic) to reach students,
so that no one is left behind.

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Philosophy and Principles LIS SPT 4Prelim Week 2
of Teaching

Samples of a teaching philosophy

Example 2:
Why It Works: This explanation makes clear that this teacher
believes effective teaching brings everybody along together.
You can also make brief mention of educational theories or
scientific studies that support your philosophy, or you can
refer to other educators who exemplify your philosophy. You
are trying to make it clear to that you think carefully about
how you teach and are well-educated on educational
practices.
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Philosophy and Principles LIS SPT 4Prelim Week 2
of Teaching

Samples of a teaching philosophy

Example 3
Everyone in the classroom contributes as a student, teacher, and thinker. I
learn from students as much as they learn from me. One way I emphasize
this philosophy in my classes is to incorporate regular feedback from
students. For example, I ask students to fill out an evaluation of the class,
in which they reflect on the course goals and provide feedback on whether
or not the course is helping them meet these goals thus far. Students have
been so insightful, providing useful information for me on what is
working in class, and what I can improve upon. I believe we never stop
learning, and I want my students to know we can learn from each other.

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Philosophy and Principles LIS SPT 4Prelim Week 2
of Teaching

Samples of a teaching philosophy

Why It Works:
This answer provides specifics about how the teacher sees
their role. It also shows that the teacher is receptive to
feedback and able to incorporate that into their approach.

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Philosophy and Principles LIS SPT 4Prelim Week 2
of Teaching

Samples of a teaching philosophy

Example 2:
Why It Works: This explanation makes clear that this teacher
believes effective teaching brings everybody along together.
You can also make brief mention of educational theories or
scientific studies that support your philosophy, or you can
refer to other educators who exemplify your philosophy. You
are trying to make it clear to your interviewers that you think
carefully about how you teach and are well-educated on
educational practices.
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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

What is a teaching philosophy?

Though specific beliefs are often unique

in some way to the educator, teaching
philosophies tend to include some
common elements:

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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

COMMON ELEMENTS

• Concept of learning: The educator defines what it

means for a person to learn or master a concept and
describes an ideal learning situation.
• Concept of teaching: The educator expounds on their
educational values and aspirations, defines their
understanding of the teacher's role in education and
describes ideal teaching scenarios.
• Student goals: The educator discusses the ideal
learning outcomes and what improvements they hope
to produce in their students.
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Philosophy and Principles LIS SPT 4Prelim Week 2
of Teaching

COMMON ELEMENTS

• Teaching methods and strategies: The educator

describes the various ways in which they intend to
achieve their student goals, often explaining how
each method can facilitate their implementation of
teaching and learning concepts.
• Teacher–student interactions: The educator
describes what they believe is the ideal dynamic
between a teacher and their students and explains
why they wish to work with their preferred level of
learners.
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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

COMMON ELEMENTS

• Assessment: The educator's statement about

assessment relates to their methods for measuring
improvement, the types of assessment they use and
their beliefs about the accuracy or efficacy of grading,
particularly in certain contexts.
• Professional development: The educator's statement
on professional development addresses their personal
and professional goals, how they plan to keep pace or
grow as a teacher and how they believe they can
measure their own development.
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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

12 types of teaching philosophies

Though the particulars of a teaching

philosophy may be unique to a specific
educator, most philosophies fall under a
particular school of thought, or a
combination thereof. To help develop your
own ideas about education, consider the
following broad categories of teaching
philosophies:
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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

12 Common Teaching Philosophies

1. Behaviorism
The behaviorist school of thought states that students learn
behaviors through their interactions. According to
behaviorists, an individual's intrinsic qualities have little
bearing on how they behave within an environment. Rather,
the teacher can directly and intentionally influence the quality
and consistency of student behaviors with various strategies.
An example of behaviorist thought in practice is positive
reinforcement, in which a learner receives a reward for
positive actions. In time, they come to associate these actions
with rewards and so prefer to behave well rather than poorly.
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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

12 Common Teaching Philosophies

2. Conservatism
In pedagogy, conservatism refers to the belief that the original
intended purpose of education was to prepare learners for
entry into an established culture, with its traditional values and
social pathways. An educational conservative is likely to believe
teaching to be an act of data transmission and learning to be
the combined acts of obedience and data acceptance. This
school of thought may also deny any nonacademic functions
of education, such as the belief that schools also function as
environments where young people learn about social
interactions and the value of the individual.

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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

12 Common Teaching Philosophies

3. Constructivism
The constructivist philosophy states that learners develop
knowledge by building on the foundations of previous
learning. Constructivists acknowledge that learners come
from different backgrounds, so they carry their unique set
of circumstances and experiences into the shared
environment of the classroom. Moreover, the experiences
and knowledge specific to a learner can affect how they
receive new information. Aside from these ideas concerning
unique foundations and learning outcomes, constructivism
includes the following precepts:
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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

CONSTRUCTIVISM

• Social interactions, such as those experienced through discussion and

group work, are essential to the construction of knowledge.
• It's necessary for learners to engage actively in learning activities not only
to gain knowledge but also to retain it and build meaningfully on top of it.
• It's also necessary for individuals to reflect actively on their learning so
that they achieve a more complete understanding of new ideas.
• Learning happens when people can connect new information with what
they already know or thought they knew.
• Motivation and a willingness to reflect on previous learning are crucial to
the learning process.
• As learners develop, they become better and identifying relevant
information, classifying it mentally and weaving it into sophisticated
systems of thought that incorporate multiple simultaneous ideas.

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Philosophy and Principles LIS SPT 4Prelim Week 2
of Teaching

12 Common Teaching Philosophies

4. Essentialism
Essentialism focuses primarily or entirely on the teaching and
mastery of core basic subjects and skills. In an essentialist
approach, the topics and competencies covered are commensurate
with the learners' level of development. A student at the earliest
stage of learning practices simple skills and concepts, which
increase in complexity as the student advances in their learning
trajectory. Typically, the subjects or skills that essentialists
emphasize are reading, writing, mathematics, science, history, art,
music and foreign languages, with technology being a common
modern addition to the repertoire. Essentialist teaching methods
often rely on rote practice and standardized assessment.
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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

12 Common Teaching Philosophies

5. Humanism
Humanism is a teaching philosophy that centers on the
needs of the student. According to this approach, students
learn best under self-direction, when they have input in what
they learn, so it's the goal of the educator to facilitate a love
of and competency for learning. To that end, humanistic
educators aim to establish a safe, nonthreatening
environment for learners and openly validate students'
feelings as part of the learning process. Grades play little to
no role in a humanistic learning environment since self-
evaluation is the only meaningful form of assessment.
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Philosophy and Principles LIS SPT 4Prelim Week 2
of Teaching

12 Common Teaching Philosophies

6. Idealism
Idealism, as a teaching philosophy, posits that ideas are the
only true reality and the objective of the learner is to seek
the truth. In this understanding of the world, true ideas are
ongoing universal constants, so learners can discover
knowledge but not necessarily create it. Some idealists also
state that the goal of education is to develop the sort of
mind and skills that can better serve society. An important
facet of the idealist approach is awareness of a role model
whose example can guide the learner to an understanding
of their place in and contributions to society.
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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

12 Common Teaching Philosophies

7. Liberalism
Liberalism refers to a philosophy aimed at cultivating free
human beings through exposure to a broad array of
subjects and skills and the development of civic values
tested via engagement with important ideas and issues. A
liberalist approach to education is necessarily
multidisciplinary, allowing learners some freedom to
choose their path while allowing them the opportunity to
develop knowledge in a wide range of subjects. Thus, this
philosophy tends to result in what people commonly call a
"well-rounded education."
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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

12 Common Teaching Philosophies

8. Perennialism
The perennialist teaching philosophy centers on the
subject. This approach focuses on the teaching of ideas
that have everlasting and universal value and truth. The
teaching focus, then, is on principles such as reasoning
and critical thinking in addition to time-tested concepts
from well-known figures such as Plato and Einstein. The
educator is responsible for guiding students in their
efforts to think critically and logically and showing them
how to appreciate great everlasting works.
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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

12 Common Teaching Philosophies

9. Positivism
Positivism — stemming from the Latin "a posteriori,"
meaning "based on reasoning and facts" — is a
teaching philosophy based on evidence-based
learning and verifiable notions. It's a teacher-oriented
philosophy that relies on concrete data and
knowledge gained through experiments. Owing to
these characteristics, positivism tends to feature in
the sciences and engineering disciplines.

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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

12 Common Teaching Philosophies

10. Pragmatism
The pragmatist approach posits that the goal of education is
to teach learners the knowledge and skills that are likely to be
of practical use to them. To that end, pragmatist educators
tend to implement such methods as project- and play-based
learning, experiential learning, experimentation and
excursions. What qualifies as pragmatic is often dependent on
the circumstances of the learner, their environment and their
time. As societies evolve in response to changing technologies
and lifestyles, the pragmatic teaching philosophy adapts to
provide learners with relevant education.
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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

12 Common Teaching Philosophies

11. Progressivism
The progressivist teaching philosophy is a student-oriented
approach that considers the significance of individuality and
its connection to active learning. Progressivism states that
the ideal learning situation is when the subject matter is
relevant to the life of the learner and their abilities.
Progressivist educators, therefore, often try to reveal the
relevance of academic topics to stoke the curiosity and
engagement of their students. This approach also
emphasizes interaction, cooperation and consideration of
other viewpoints as essential elements of learning.
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Philosophy and Principles
of Teaching

12 Common Teaching Philosophies

12. Realism
The realist teaching philosophy states that reality and
the mind's perception of it are separate phenomena. In
reality, there are objective truths and values, and it's the
goal of education to promote rational modes of
thought to uncover what truth is. Educators who the
realist philosophy tend to focus on teaching critical
thinking and the scientific method. By these means can
learners overcome their preconceptions and biases and
approach a more logical perception.
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