Personal Philosophy Impact

My philosophy of education will impact my classroom in a number of ways, from assessment, classroom organization, content area, to classroom climate, learning focuses, technology integration and teaching styles, all factors of my classroom will be impacted by student-centered learning. Starting with classroom organization, it will be essential to the success of my students so it is imperative to establish a system for lesson and curriculum development. My philosophy states I need to be prepared to set an example for student success. In doing so, lessons will be well thought-out and planned over. I will probably over-plan for my lessons just to make sure students are getting the most out of the allotted time they are in my four walls. Physical classroom set up will follow the same precedent of being organized. There will be labels for everything, encouraging class mottos, and samples of student work on the wall. Actual arrangement of furniture in my classroom will depend of what activities are set for the day.

Social studies provides such as interesting lens for students to think critically about the society they are in and the world around them. Learning focuses will be found within the content, but also include many social skills. Using educational philosophy inspiration from the theorist John Dewey, who believed that education’s purpose was to educate the whole student to in turn benefit society. Using social studies, and the teaching tolerance anti-bias framework, students will be able to use their critical thinking skills in order to make sense of and critique their surroundings. Assessment in my classroom will take form in multiple ways using the UDL method. UDL requires multiple means of expression, which means that students should have various ways to demonstrate their understanding. In my classroom, this can be achieved by giving students choice in how they convey their content understanding.

I want my classroom climate to be built upon respect, specifically students that respect themselves, each other, their environment, and myself. I think respect is an important aspect of being successful in school and out of school. I also want my students to feel safe when they are in my classroom. When students feel safe to be themselves, they will form deeper connections with their peers, and with the classroom climate, they will get respect in return. Motivation among students will be crucial to their success. I want to serve as a motivating cheerleader to students when they need an extra boost of encouragement. I also want to establish a classroom culture in which students are supportive of one another, in turn motivating each other much like I was motivated by my peers when I was a student. By leading by example, being a support for my student, and using differentiated instruction, I will accommodate for students learning styles and model good leadership skills that they can observe and duplicate if they so choose.