You cannot teach children anything, you can only help them discover
it within themselves -Galileo
For longer than I can remember,
I have wanted a classroom full of children who wanted nothing more than
to learn what I had to teach them. Now the thought of a classroom
is a reality, whereas the children in it may never be. Life isn‘t as perfect
as we are conditioned to think, there will be some challenges. Each
child is different, some may be easier to teach than others, and some may
not want to learn at all. But my job as a teacher is to awaken the need
for learning and knowledge that lies within each child. Although
the children need to learn all of the things taught in school I think that
the teacher’s job starts with educating the heart. As an elementary
teacher I will come in contact with children from all different kinds of
backgrounds, yet they should all have a common goal to grow through learning.
My teaching philosophy lies partially
in humanism, which involves self-actualization; integrating knowledge learned
in the classroom into daily lives and stressing human values. Too many
problems in this day and age are caused by the lack of respect and caring
for oneself as well as others. As you appeal to a child’s mental
needs, you must also guide education in the emotional and the physical
aspects of growing.
I believe that the teacher’s role
lies not in a lecturer but a facilitator for problem solving skills. Too
often children are taught the right way to solve problems, which leads
a child to think, “I am not allowed to think in a way that makes sense
to me, but rather I have to copy the model of the teacher.” So we are creating
a generation of students who cannot think for themselves. So teach
children through life and not books. Make learning part of life and
therefore intrinsically motivating, and socially rewarding.
Child centered learning, self
actualization, problem solving, and teaching children to care about themselves
and those around them will be the focus of my everyday strategy for guiding
individuals who will grow up to make a difference in themselves and others.