Educational Philosophy
Educational: providing knowledge. Philo: lover of. Soph: wisdom
One could infer “Educational Philosophy” is providing knowledge to foster a love of wisdom. I couldn’t think of a better way of describing my educational philosophy than showing my students the passionate love affair of wisdom and success.
As a math teacher, I used to hope my students would memorize their math facts and algorithms so they would do well on their quizzes and tests. My objective has evolved over time. My priority now is to foster independent, confident, creative, and persistent problem solvers. This of course is easier said than done. In order to attain this, I believe teachers must challenge students with rigorous tasks keeping Bloom’s Taxonomy in mind, that will require time, patience, analysis and evaluation, flexibility, and perseverance.
“It’s not that I’m so smart, I just stick with problems longer.” -Einstein
“It doesn’t matter how slowly you go, as long as you don’t stop.” -Confucious
Creating an environment where students are comfortable taking risks and not fearing making mistakes is crucial to building confidence and perseverance. Many students feel crippled when coming across a problem they can’t solve immediately. You can see the look on their face and instantly know they have talked themselves out of the problem. By modeling how to overcome struggle and failure with determination, belief and understanding, my students will comprehend that even their teacher doesn’t know everything about math...and that’s ok. He might not be able to solve a problem immediately, but he’ll learn from his mistakes to start again more intelligently.
“Failure is the opportunity to begin again more intelligently.” - Henry Ford
Independent students are not dependent on their teacher to learn strategies on problem solving. This has been one of the hardest, but meaningful shifts in teaching. I initially approached teaching problem solving the way I was taught. I isolated a skill/strategy and modeled several examples of it. Students were then asked to use the exact same strategy on their assessments where the questions was pretty much the same, but the numbers were different. I have now discovered that if you want students to become independent thinkers, you can’t do the thinking for them. Let them absorb a problem with no interference. Let them choose their own strategies. Do not make them feel scared to get it wrong. Have them explain and defend their thinking, while being open to feedback from others. Provide time to have academic conversations with their peers to show them how one problem can be solved in many different ways.
As a teacher with a Smart Board and 1:1 student to iPad ratio, I have really taken a liking to technology. Using the SAMR model and ISTE standards, I have been re-energized to design and develop digital age learning experiences and assessments. ISTE standard number 2 sums it up quite nicely, “Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessments incorporating contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context.” SAMR and ISTE has helped shape a change in my assessments from the traditional long paper test to tasks and hands-on projects that require students to not only answer a question, but to explain and defend their answers.
In addition to allowing for authentic assessments and audiences, technology also can be a great facilitator of using formative assessments to help personalize learning. To assume that every student can learn new concepts at the same pace and in the exact same style is silly. Any experienced teacher understands that some students can learn a concept immediately after minimum exposure, while others will need more instruction, with potentially a different strategy. Using online surveys and assessments allows teachers to analyze which students show comprehension and need to be pushed, and which students need further support.
While we are not all born with the same ability, I truly believe everyone has the ability to learn and grow. We all have strengths and weaknesses. One of the first things I do with my students is to show them Howard Gardner’s list and explanations of the multiple intelligences. I share with them which intelligences I possess with examples to support it, as well as which intelligences I have room to grow. My hope is that modeling this metacognition will allow all students to see that they everyone has their strengths and weakness, and our goal to develop both.
Being a teacher is a profession I take very seriously, while having lots of fun. I understand that we are help shaping our youth and future. It is teachers’ jobs to help prepare their students to be successful in the present and future. It is also our responsibility to involve students in the decision-making process, so the can take ownership of their learning.
One could infer “Educational Philosophy” is providing knowledge to foster a love of wisdom. I couldn’t think of a better way of describing my educational philosophy than showing my students the passionate love affair of wisdom and success.
As a math teacher, I used to hope my students would memorize their math facts and algorithms so they would do well on their quizzes and tests. My objective has evolved over time. My priority now is to foster independent, confident, creative, and persistent problem solvers. This of course is easier said than done. In order to attain this, I believe teachers must challenge students with rigorous tasks keeping Bloom’s Taxonomy in mind, that will require time, patience, analysis and evaluation, flexibility, and perseverance.
“It’s not that I’m so smart, I just stick with problems longer.” -Einstein
“It doesn’t matter how slowly you go, as long as you don’t stop.” -Confucious
Creating an environment where students are comfortable taking risks and not fearing making mistakes is crucial to building confidence and perseverance. Many students feel crippled when coming across a problem they can’t solve immediately. You can see the look on their face and instantly know they have talked themselves out of the problem. By modeling how to overcome struggle and failure with determination, belief and understanding, my students will comprehend that even their teacher doesn’t know everything about math...and that’s ok. He might not be able to solve a problem immediately, but he’ll learn from his mistakes to start again more intelligently.
“Failure is the opportunity to begin again more intelligently.” - Henry Ford
Independent students are not dependent on their teacher to learn strategies on problem solving. This has been one of the hardest, but meaningful shifts in teaching. I initially approached teaching problem solving the way I was taught. I isolated a skill/strategy and modeled several examples of it. Students were then asked to use the exact same strategy on their assessments where the questions was pretty much the same, but the numbers were different. I have now discovered that if you want students to become independent thinkers, you can’t do the thinking for them. Let them absorb a problem with no interference. Let them choose their own strategies. Do not make them feel scared to get it wrong. Have them explain and defend their thinking, while being open to feedback from others. Provide time to have academic conversations with their peers to show them how one problem can be solved in many different ways.
As a teacher with a Smart Board and 1:1 student to iPad ratio, I have really taken a liking to technology. Using the SAMR model and ISTE standards, I have been re-energized to design and develop digital age learning experiences and assessments. ISTE standard number 2 sums it up quite nicely, “Teachers design, develop, and evaluate authentic learning experiences and assessments incorporating contemporary tools and resources to maximize content learning in context.” SAMR and ISTE has helped shape a change in my assessments from the traditional long paper test to tasks and hands-on projects that require students to not only answer a question, but to explain and defend their answers.
In addition to allowing for authentic assessments and audiences, technology also can be a great facilitator of using formative assessments to help personalize learning. To assume that every student can learn new concepts at the same pace and in the exact same style is silly. Any experienced teacher understands that some students can learn a concept immediately after minimum exposure, while others will need more instruction, with potentially a different strategy. Using online surveys and assessments allows teachers to analyze which students show comprehension and need to be pushed, and which students need further support.
While we are not all born with the same ability, I truly believe everyone has the ability to learn and grow. We all have strengths and weaknesses. One of the first things I do with my students is to show them Howard Gardner’s list and explanations of the multiple intelligences. I share with them which intelligences I possess with examples to support it, as well as which intelligences I have room to grow. My hope is that modeling this metacognition will allow all students to see that they everyone has their strengths and weakness, and our goal to develop both.
Being a teacher is a profession I take very seriously, while having lots of fun. I understand that we are help shaping our youth and future. It is teachers’ jobs to help prepare their students to be successful in the present and future. It is also our responsibility to involve students in the decision-making process, so the can take ownership of their learning.