My Philosophy
I enjoy teaching because it allows me to draw on my strengths of energy, enthusiasm, and humor to positively impact the growth of students, who I deeply care about. The key ingredient for every educator should be passion. Most of my teaching styles in the classroom have been shaped by my experiences as an athlete and a coach. Team sports, such as football, serve as great education model that correlates well to the classroom setting. Practice is a high energy environment where coaches model kinetic actions to athletes who then repeat the movement through well organized drill periods. Collaborative learning is then utilized by having those student athletes who have mastered the drill continue to work with those who haven’t. Motivation, team work, goal setting and leadership are aspects of athletics that can easily be incorporated into the classroom setting. I have had a lot more success teaching math and science when I approach the classroom like I do the practice field.
I believe that building relationships with the students is paramount to their success, especially our at risk learners. Sometimes teachers are so concerned with content and classroom management that never take the time to get to know their students. I believe if students know you are genuinely interested in their progress and you care about them they are more apt to work harder.
In my teaching I have discover that less usually means more when it comes to classroom management. Over the years I have dwindled down my rules list to one, mutual respect. Respect for each other, for yourself, for me, and for the learning process. Almost every classroom disruption or need for disciplinarian action falls under the topic of respect.
A prominent component of my teaching philosophy relies on my constructivist views on learning. I believe that learning should be relevant to the student’s environment and where they want to go in the future, but should also incorporate past experiences of the learner in an effort to construct new meaning. Using technology to construct new meaning in the classroom is more than a tool; it is a way of life for the next generation of students. Technology is woven into the fabric of our society, from communication, entertainment, organization, conducting commerce, forecasting market trends… To tap into our student’s experiences and prepare them to compete in an ever changing global economy, it is pivotal we maximize our efforts in incorporating appropriate technologies into the classroom.
