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Your philosophy as a teacher
Your philosophy as a teacher
Difference between progressvisim and existentialism
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Philosophy
Is it possible when you are a child to know what you want to spend the majority of your life doing? I believe that some people know what path they will choose even at a very young age. I found that I am one of those people since I have wanted to be a teacher for as long as I can remember. Teaching is a unique, demanding profession that I have chosen since I enjoy being around young people and helping people understand new concepts. I have chosen to teach math and business. I want to teach math because I have been in so many math classes in which students have struggled and I want to be able to help students who struggle understand and apply the concepts. I want to teach business because technology and business has become such a significant part of society and I want to prepare young people for that aspect of their futures. In order to provide my students with the best education I can offer, I will focus on the philosophies of progressivism and existentialism.
First, I will focus on progressivism because it focuses on practicality. What good is possessing knowledge if you cannot apply what you know in life? The best answers are discovered through trial and error: discovering what works and what does not. I like the progressive approach because it focuses on application more than memorization, and focuses around the students more than the teacher. After all, America was intended to be a democracy, not a monarchy. I believe I can provide my students with a more than adequate education without major disciplinary issues by earning their respect and without making them feel inferior. I plan to give sufficient attention to students with unique learning styles and exceptionalities. I believe I can stray away from the traditional teacher centered classroom and still maintain structure in an effort to provide the most beneficial environment for my students.
In addition to focusing on progressivism, I will also focus on existentialism. I believe an existentialist approach, if used effectively, will help mold my students into responsible people who at least know they are accountable for their actions.
From the time a child enters preschool, teachers begin asking a common question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” That dreaded query has always haunted me, mostly because the way it was redundantly asked put a ton of pressure on me and my peers. The question was like a rusty nail being hammered into our head’s by society. I continuously had the cliché answers of becoming a doctor, teacher, or a police officer, but with serious reservations. After years of not having a clue, I started to think about what I like to do after the stresses of work and school were gone at the end of the day.
One of the main concepts behind progressivism was to improve the overall American lifestyle. Many state citizens were subject to products of low quality education, as well as low income households. According to a term paper provided by Academia.edu, progressivism allowed students to learn and develop as a person through lessons that cause the student to become involved in the lesson, along with the provision of a scientific method that allowed reflective thinking. (Mercado) Mercado’s document also observes that a challenge that the subject causes in modernized education is many educational environments follow a procedure where students are provided with a task or assignment, and are expected to practice it until they become seemingly...
As I was preparing to leave high school and look for a career, I had to make an immense decision. I had to decide what field I wanted to pursue, and how to go about it. I knew I wanted to teach because it offered everything I wanted in a profession including, good benefits, decent pay, the chance to work with children, and the chance to eventually coach High School Football. No other career I found can offer all of these advantages.
As a child, when someone asked me what I was going to be when I grew up my answer was always a teacher. For as long as I can remember I wanted to teach. When I was around 7 or 8 years old I would make my grandmother math worksheets and she would pretend to be my student. I knew as I grew older that yes, my dream job as a kid was exactly what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I started looking into different fields of teaching. I was stuck between high school English or Anatomy/Biology. So I began my freshman year of college as a biology student and I did community service at a local daycare. One week working with the children and I knew then that I wanted to be an elementary teacher more than anything. To see the smiles on their faces
The first and most important of the three formal educational philosophies that have been major influences on the formation of my own philosophy is progressivism. Progressivism is based on the belief that people learn best from what they consider to be relevant to their every day lives. In other words, students learn best from personal experience, hands-on experiments, and from interacting in groups with those around them. However, for these small groups to be entirely effective, they must be chosen at random; basing the groups on race, gender, sexuality, or social background will defeat their main purpose.
The philosophy that I feel the strongest connection to is Progressivism. In my educational journey the teachers that have made the most significant impact have been progressive. From K-12, I had two teachers who used the progressivism method and the lessons that I learned from them are still with me today. The progressive teachers express more individuality and creativity than others. Progressive educators relate material to real-life experiences that the learner can relate to. They generally conduct group activities rather than individual assignments.
Education serves as the foundation to a lifetime of learning. Since every child is unique, I believe that it is important for them to learn in an environment that is both secure and stimulating. By creating this type of atmosphere, the students will be able to realize their intelligence and use it constructively. As a future educator, it will be my goal to establish a classroom that is, 1) non-authoritarian, 2) student-centered, and 3) focused around student experience. These three elements are part of Progressivism, the educational philosophy I plan to incorporate in my classroom.
My philosophy at this point is progressivism. William James and John Dewey are accredited for developing the characteristically American philosophy that is progressivism. Progressivism relies on the theory that the student should be the focal point. By adjusting the curriculum and teaching techniques to reflect the student’s needs and interests, the teacher is encouraging the student’s desire to learn. Another theory of progressivism is that of a democratic system. Students will fare better in life if they are exposed to the ideas and cultures of different ethnicities and personalities early. By encouraging group work, instead of solo work that will lead to competitions, the students will be more open minded and will be better prepared for the diverse world.
Through my own experiences, and as enforced by others' opinions in the profession, I have found that teaching is one of the most rewarding careers. Not only are you placed in the position of instructing and guiding children and young adults through the life long learning process, but you are able to give back to the schools and communities which have supported your early education and experiences that opened you up to a bright future. In becoming an educator, I hope to someday share the knowledge and lend the helping, supportive hand that I was once given, allowing students to formulate their own perspectives of the multicultural society and world around them. Teaching is a career I have been interested in pursuing throughout high school, and as my experiences and study in the field expands, I feel that my desire to teach will grow stronger and develop more soundly.
For Steve Jobs, he declares, “ I was lucky- I found what I loved to do early in life” (Jobs 11). Students normally have the most trouble finding out what they want to pursue in their future. Some do it because their family tells them too and others want to explore the best of their options. Regardless, as long as they find what they like, it adds another reason to why they wake up everyday.
My main goal as a teacher is primarily to provide students with the knowledge that will help them further excel in their everyday lives, but also to teach students to apply the knowledge they gained and take advantage of opportunities that will enrich their lives. Many times, students learn better when they feel a certain subject is relevant in their lives. I feel that it is important to have a curriculum that is based on the student’s interest, experience and capabilities. Having a textbook integrated in a curriculum is important, but a student will have a better understanding of the subject area when experience is involved. Although there are many different techniques to education, I feel that the philosophy of progressivism and essentialism best fits my style and belief of teaching. These teaching philosophies focus around student needs, democracy, and the basics of education.
The first main reason that I have chosen teaching as a profession is because I believe that it’s continuous rewards will help me to lead a happy and fulfilled life. For example, teaching young children is one of the few jobs in which you can give and receive hugs on a daily basis. Children have an innocence and a passion for knowledge that I find amazing and I do not feel complete unless I am around them. Teaching will help provide this fulfillment for me every day. Also, teaching is a job in which it is ok, and even encouraged, to laugh each and every day. I feel that this is important for a person’s well-being and I think that it helps to keep people young and alive. I feel that in many other professions the day-to-day routine would become monotonous and boring, and I do not think that I would live a truly happy and fulfilled life unless I could be around children. I feel that a classroom provides many unique and dynamic opportunities every single day and I find that very appealing. Also, I am a very relationship-oriented person and I feel that I will enjoy building unique relationships with each child. I plan on knowing every child as thoroughly as possible because I feel that this will help me to be better at my job.
My philosophy of education would be progressivism and existentialism. I would use progressivism because I like the hands-on learning style. Also, because I want to teach at a preschool or kindergarten. Children learn better if they have more hands-on learning then just sitting and listening to you talk. With progressivism, the education is child centered so your focus is your children and not a test. You have more freedom to teach them what they want to learn. You can make the learning more interactive, or shaped to the child’s learning style. The philosopher in progressivism that stood out to me was John Dewey. Per the textbook, Foundations of Education 12th edition, “Dewey had three levels of education; 1. “making and doing”, engages children in projects in which they explore their environment and act on their ideas. These activities help develop sensory and motor skills. 2. Broaden students’ concept of space and time in projects of history and geography. 3. “science”, bring students into contact with various subjects, for example Biology, Chemistry, Humanities.” (Pg.118) I like how Dewey incorporated everything into his three levels. First he looked at the child’s development, then what they can learn about the world, lastly science, all while trying to make it more hands-on. I like the project ideas, It forces the children to learn on their own. Dewey just wants to help people get the best education that they can in the best way possible. He won’t discriminate on your race, religion, gender, economic class, he thinks that people can learn from each other and their experiences. I like Dewey’s philosophy on education. For me I would probably do a lot of hands-on in my class. So, safe hand on science experiments, so the childr...
It is beneficial to teach real world lessons and inspire student discovery and problem solving. The curriculum focuses on the interests of the students and establishes a fine balance between valued content and interactive learning activities. The curriculum is important because it has the ability to reach students on different levels and what appeals to them. When students are interested in the subject matter, they want to learn and do not feel forced to learn. The instruction and delivery of this philosophy is very important because I believe active engagement, constructivism, and cooperative learning will enhance the students life skills and what they will carry with them in the future. As a progressivist teacher I believe it is important to to think outside the box and know how to go above and beyond to fulfill the potential of my
My philosophy of education is a combination of essentialism and progressivism . I feel that knowledge can be learned from a textbook, but I also want my students to use other means of knowledge. I fell in certain times, I should be the center of the classroom and other times, the students should be the center. Education is about the students and I am there to guide them through their journey. I think it's important to let children learn by exploring. By doing this, they choose what information is important and should be retained. When it comes to learning, students should always be in the center. The teachers are only there to mentor and improve upon a child's skills. In my mind progressivism with a mix of essentialism is the best philosophy for me to follow.