Teaching Philosophy Statement

Christy Bickett’s greatest influences on becoming a teacher were the teachers she had in her life. Her first teachers, her parents, always emphasized the importance of education. Both parents went back to college while she was attending school demonstrating the changing effect education could play in their life. As a struggling reader in elementary school, teachers showed her the worlds she could discover in books with their constant reassurances. In high school, her teachers and coaches served as a second family pushing her to achieve more than she thought possible.

Have you ever truly sat down and talked to a teacher? If you haven’t you should because you’ll be surprised at how much of a real person they are and not just teacher the whole time. When I started JROTC LTC Duncan had just started his teaching career so we got to get to know each other. As I grew, he helped me stay out of a lot of trouble and also helped me grow. As I grew I got to know LTC Duncan better and when we talked about his childhood and teen years I could relate but not directly. For example we both had big dreams when we were kids. LTC Duncan wanted to be a astronaut (interview1-1) and I wanted to be some big rich guy that owns multiple facilities across the US. We both are/were smarty pants as kids and teens, but we are also nice people. In our teenage years we both had jobs we didn't like. LTC Duncan had his factory jobs and ive had my landscaping jobs(Interview1-1). We both hated our jobs

I believe that with motivation and guidance, children of all backgrounds can harbor success in the educational world and receive the skills they need to have a successful and prosperous life. It is a teacher’s duty to encourage lifelong learning, consider individual learning styles and aptitudes, and self-reflect on how to improve. My experiences as an engineer, a person of color, a pre-service teacher, and a STEM advocate have culminated together to form my educational values and philosophy.

For my educational interview I wanted to talk to the teacher that that inspired me to go into education. Chris Wells has been teaching at Cottage Grove High School in Cottage Grove Oregon for 13 years. Wells received his bachelor's in Philosophy University of Oregon as well as his Masters in Education and his Masters in Science from the University of Oregon.

Mr. Rose presents many descriptive vignettes of teaching professionals in his life who have influenced him both positively and negatively and whom he has retained for emulation or distinction. These characters in his life include teachers from grammar school throughout his college experience. All have in one way or another left a considerable imprint on his recollection of school and learning.

After the twenty hours of observations, my overall personal teaching theory hasn’t changed a great deal. I still believe strongly in my three key beliefs established, which are passion, respect and adaptability. However, I would be lying if I said I haven’t altered my general idea of my teaching philosophy. The twenty hours that I spent at Valley View Middle-school in the seventh grade was quite an experience that made me realize, really just how much time and energy you have to give to the students in order to teach little work.

Education is defined as the lifelong process of acquiring knowledge, skills, and values through either formal means, such as schooling, or informal means, such as firsthand experiences or vicarious experiences gained through reading books or discussions. Every person that is or wants to be a teacher has his or her own educational philosophy. We all have our own views, methods, and curriculum that we were taught when growing up. A lot of people may have the same teachers in school, but all of them learn different things from that teacher.

Twelve years ago, I was not interested in becoming a teacher. I was content with my life. Then, I had two wonderful children. As they became school age, my opinion of teachers was immensely altered. I have spent countless hours within my children’s school, became personally connected to the wonderful individuals who were their teachers, and developed a respect for these tireless workers. These individuals have created a desire within me to enhance children’s lives and improve society through education.

Every teacher has a different method of teaching. The teachers that I have had in my school career have been no exception. In this way, each teacher has set an example for me, as a future teacher, to follow or not to follow as I see fit. With the examples from my teachers and in continuing my education, I am developing my own method of teaching. I plan to use a combination of teaching methods in my own classroom. My method will be an eclectic approach because I will be using components of more than one philosophy. I will be using essentialism, behaviorism, progressivism, and existentialism.

I believe that education extends far beyond the classroom walls, and involves many more people than students and teachers. People should be learning wherever they go, and should continue learning long after they’ve graduated from high school or college. Education isn’t something that can be quantified with tests or report cards, but is instead something that people carry with them. It’s a survival pack for life, and some people are better equipped in certain areas than in others. People with a solid education are prepared for nearly anything, as they will be able to provide for their own physical, emotional, and aesthetic needs.

As young minds begin their journey through the education system, they stand head to head with some challenging tasks that require them to think within the classroom, beyond the barriers set in their way. Yet, each student can also remember the teacher that helped them, challenged them and motivated them to be not only overcome those barricades, but to become a better student and a superior individual. I can specifically recall myself coming across that teacher just as I entered my final year of middle school. I walked into my Period 7 Science class on the first day of 8th grade as a determined student with an open mind, ready to work. It quickly showed that my teacher was going to expect just that out of every student that walked through his door. I was lucky enough to have a teacher, known as Mr. Ruscuitto, who would help shape me into being not only a successful student, but a successful adult, as well as influencing me to become a future educator. I have chosen this wonderful teacher due to his disciplined teaching style, his organization within the classroom, his knowledge on a variety of subjects and his receptiveness to each student’s ideas.

I consider and know that children are the future of our world; we have to know how to teach and educate them adequately so they could be prepared to lead future generations. I consider that each child has its own way of learning; there are multiple ways in which a person could be intelligent and capable of completing tasks. I want to be able to help children with everything they need. I want to motivate them to do and be the best in every task and area, everything that they dream and think about, to persuade their dreams and never give up no matter how hard they think it is or how difficult becomes trough the way. I don’t want to be the type of teacher that goes through the school year teaching what I have to and limit my capabilities to show them things and lessons useful for their lives, I want every child that goes to my classroom, leave it at the end of the year with instructions or lessons that make them better persons. Additionally, think that it’s important to have a good balance between discipline and kindness with students, it’s important to have a good relationship with the students because in that way is easier to communicate with them; if they have any problems or trouble learning a lesson or something in the content, if they have a good communication and relationship with you, it will be easier for them to tell you about what is causing them trouble. In some cases, when the educator is strong and teaches with hard discipline, the students tend to evade them and

When I think about teachers that I have had in the past, several different ones come to my mind. Each of these educators stands out in my mind for a variety of diverse reasons. Whether it is their sense of humor, their tactfulness, their love of the subject matter, their fanatical and sporadic behavior, or their yearning to be childish themselves, I can still remember at least one quality of every teacher I have ever encountered. Every one of these teachers conveyed subject material to their students just as they were educated and employed to do. However, I trust that every professional in the world has an abundance of opportunity for improvement; teachers could discover and improve themselves merely by having

Just as all our students come with unique experiences and backgrounds, we as teachers all have different experiences and training that prepare us to excel in the classroom. The way I learn, the way I was thought and the experience I had as a student in the classroom greatly influence the way I teach today.

The second example of a teacher that changed the way I viewed teaching and learning is Ms. Gardner. Ms. Gardner was my high school math teacher. She combined two very important aspects that I want to incorporate when I become a teacher. She included my parents in the learning experience and she made students feel capable of learning what seemed like the hardest equations possible. I struggled with math once I entered into high school; I could not comprehend the subject. Ms. Gardner was the second math teach I had in high school, and she ended up being the best. She called a parent teacher conference because I was on the verge of failing the class. Ms. Gardner sat down with all of us and presented study tips for not only me, but my parents. She gave them a mini math lesson so they would be better equipped to teach me at home. Not my parents nor I were prepared for this, but they left that night