Developing an Educational Philosophy

As a preservice teacher, I know my educational philosophy. It has developed by witnessing excellent teachers and through studying what works. My philosophy has also been developed by witnessing and experiencing the affects of teachers showing me what not to do. An article on Edutopia by Ben Johnson and another article on ThoughtCo by Beth Lewis outline different questions that should be answered in a professional educational philosophy. The educational philosophy statement is often the deciding factor between getting an interview and having your application pushed aside. It is essential for preservice teachers to have time to develop their educational philosophies. The philosophies should be challenged by classroom discussion and not just discussed in surface level classes. 

In the article by Ben Johnson, There is a caption that caught my attention. " Over the summer, teachers reflect on the year and often redesign and perfect their teaching strategies and plans. In essence, they get back to the basics of what they believe is the best way to inspire learning in their students." Essentially, teachers are redesigning their philosophy of education. Over time Philosophies will chance. My philosophy will change more once I am actually teaching than it would now in my studies. I am disappointed that all of the work on philosophies has been left to my own time and that we have not had a class to fully develop philosophies of education because I feel as though, with open conversation with my peers, my philosophy will change. Peers will add to my beliefs or potentially make me think about something in a different way. Having peers to aid in this process would be so beneficial. 

Both articles provide clear examples of what they want. This is so important! I am a visual person and when someone describes something and does not give a rubric or examples than I am at a loss where to begin. When assigning work student samples are really important along with rubrics and an explanation. Hopefully this will meet the learning needs of the students in my class.

The last section for advice in the Edutopia article was on tools and resources for students. The author explained that his philosophy includes being someone to lead students along the right path by providing accurate and useful resources and classroom discussion. I also believe that this is an essential part of being a teacher. There are many things that I have had to learn on my own because there was little to no guidance along the way. As an educator I want to make sure my students are receiving meaningful aid from me that leads them to success in their career path. 

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