MY TEACHING PHYLOSOPHY

I believe that every child has a right to an education and a right learn. No child should ever be denied access to education. All people should be given the opportunity to learn. I believe that children learn through their experiences, interactions with other people, and interactions with the environment. This belief comes from the constructivist point of view. "Vygotsky proposed that social interaction, especially dialog, between children and adults is the mechanism through which specific cultural values, customs, and beliefs are transmitted from generation to generation" (Essa, 1999, p.115). Piaget's point of view was that the children not only develop and learn through a series of developmental stages, but that the children learn by constructing their own knowledge as they come in contact with the environment (Seefeldt & Wasik,2002I believe that children have very different ways in which they learn and that they represent that learning in very different ways. Howard Gardner has a Theory of Multiple Intelligences that suggests that there are seven different types of intelligences: linguistic, logical-mathematic, musical, bodily_kinesthetic, spatial, interpersonal, and intrapersonal. He says that children differ in the strengths of these seven intelligences (Allen & Catron, 1999). Each child has different strengths and talents. Every child should be given the opportunity to express their knowledge in the way that is most appropriate for them individually. I believe that children learn best when they feel respected and valued. Children have a desire and need to be included and to feel like they matter. I believe that children's basic needs must be met before they can be fully successful at learning. Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs says that people's needs have an order to them. If the needs on the top of the list are not met, then the needs lower on the list will not be able to be met and the person will not be able to function successfully (Boeree, 1998). I believe that the teacher is responsible for creating a classroom environment that is conducive to learning. The classroom should be free from distractions. The classroom should be set up with materials and manipulatives that are exciting and engaging to the children. In the Reggio Emilia curriculum model,Malaguzzi says that when it is set up correctly, the environment plays a large part in educating the child (Edwards, Forman, & Gandini, 1998). I believe that the teacher is responsible for facilitating in the classroom and scaffolding the children so that their full potential of learning can be reached. The teacher is responsible for doing all that he or she can do encourage the children and guide them toward deeper learning and understanding. Vygotsky believed that it was the role of the teacher to scaffold the children and hold their hand as they strived towards a learning goal (Allen, et al., 1999). I believe that the teacher is responsible for teaching in a way that each child's development and learning is the focus. NAEYC said that "adults are responsible forensuring children's healthy development and learning" (Bredekamp &Copple, 1997, p.17). I believe that the teacher is responsible for planning lessons that are interesting and engaging for the children and that allow them to construct their own knowledge. Piaget' s theory was called constructivist because he believed that “children construct knowledge for them-selves rather than having it conveyed by an external source” (Essa, 1999, p. 111). rk8_bookworm1.png Click "Here" to go back Home. "Teaching Philosophy." UAH Personal Web Pages. Web. 27 May 2011. .