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head: PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION Philosophy of Education Amanda Edgar Azusa Pacific University

Running head: Philosophy of Education Philosophy of Education Education The broad goal of education is to facilitate learning of all students academically, socially, and emotionally; regardless of ethnicity, socio-economic status, or belief set of each child and family. It is imperative that each individual have to opportunity to form a solid foundation as to later become a productive and active participant of society, and our democracy. Each individual should be given the opportunity to learn regardless of who they are, or where they come from. Also, if individual students understand the learning process, and its value, this empowerment can help them to long-term understanding and deeper knowledge. School is the biggest contributor to having an informed, productive, and educated society in the future. Without emphasis on education even the jobs that may appear the smallest, or the roles in society they may seem insignificant, will all be impacted. The reality is that from our engineers, doctors, and businessman and women, to our farm workers and truck drivers; education forms the whole individual, and ultimately how we all interact and live with each other. Forming character is just as important as learning

math skills; learning responsibility is just as important as learning to enhance writing skills. I believe that each facet of society, from the highest government, to each individual family, should support education. Even the individual who may not have school-age children, will ultimately be impacted by the positive or negative trends in education. While they may not see the relevance to supporting it monetarily, ultimately a solid education base among our young people will blossom into those who make our society what it is. They will be the future lawyers or future factory workers on which the foundation of our

Running head: Philosophy of Education

country will run. Therefore, churches, businesses, and families should all support education in whatever small or big ways they can. The Student I believe in a classroom with that places emphasis on the student and their individual means for success. Focusing on the student and empowering the student is essential to my belief as well. When students become actively aware of the learning process, they can make decisions that allow for them to be active participant in their learning. While they can make such decision in their learning, I also believe that it is important to instill an appreciation for authority that will allow them to be successful in a variety of environments. I believe that it is important for each student to learn about how to become socially responsible as it applies to working with others and respecting their learning environment, as well as everyone in it. It is my hope that each child feel capable, cared for, and as though they serve an important purpose within the classroom. I want them to feel as though they have support and believe that the classroom is a place for them be themselves. It is my hope that students can gain insight into their learning process and not just understand what they are learning, but why they are learning it. I strongly believe that the student, given the right support, is fully capable of grasping hold of their own learning and becoming ultimately responsible of their education. While younger children need much facilitation for this to occur, they are still able to understand the role that they play and the appropriate things they have control over. It is their role to respect authority, but also understand the relevance in respecting an authority figure within their learning environment and in real life. It is their role to do

Running head: Philosophy of Education what they can within their own capacity, to take steps towards learning. Again, if students can begin to understand why they are learning and truly gain an understanding of its significance to life, my hope is that they will take steps in heading the right direction. The Teacher I believe that the teachers main role is leader and facilitator. The teacher is the conductor, and while the students may all play different instruments (have different

learning styles, and backgrounds) it is the job of the teacher to orchestrate a classroom that functions accordingly and in a manner in which each student can contribute and collaborate with others in pursuit of their learning. It is the responsibility of the teacher to provide a fair, safe, and enriching environment for all students. It is the responsibility of the teacher to ensure that each child has everything they need within the daily confines of the classroom, so as to be as successful as possible in or out of school. It is also the responsibility of the teacher to adjust and differentiate instruction as learning occurs, so as to meet the needs of all students. I will consciously promote excellence and high expectations for all students. I will also promote mutual respect of all students among each other and for our learning environment. In addition I will be sure to inform students that I also respect their individuality and individual needs. I feel as though my teaching style most easily fits within the constructivism philosophy of education. Due to my strong feeling of responsibility to meet each students individual needs, in conjunction with my personal view of teacher as facilitator, this best embraces the constructivist idea that children are in a sense creating their own knowledge.

Running head: Philosophy of Education Providing opportunities for them to seek out and construct their own knowledge, while stile promoting strong expectations of excellence and respect is my idea of an ideal classroom. The Curriculum The content should be selected based on the necessary skills for success when it

comes to college preparedness and work place readiness. I believe that content should be sure to cover all areas including reading, literature, mathematics, science, and social sciences. In addition to academic subject areas I believe that it is important to teach students the life skills necessary to contribute as a functioning citizen, long-term. Through focusing on character, moral issues, and basing curriculum around important life lessons and universal themes, we can expose children to important issues they will face in the real world. Integration of curriculum into all subject areas can allow for in-depth focus on both academic achievement and character building principle. We should teach our children how to become good people, contributing members of society, and informed democratic participants with an accepting and comprehensive worldview. In addition we must teach our children the skills in reading, writing, and math to be successful in higher education and the workplace, so that they can compete on a global level. The future of our nation relys on the education of our young people; therefore it is extremely important that our curriculum covers all areas, and that our goals and expectations of excellence are high. The curriculum should be selected by individuals directly involved with education, and with in-class teaching experience. I believe that the more collaborative the process the better, and the more insight they receive before implementing any changes in curriculum,

Running head: Philosophy of Education the better. I feel that it is the teachers own responsibility to tailor the way in which the curriculum is taught to meet the needs of the students in their class. I also believe that

there should be content standards that should be addressed at each grade level, as to have consistency among grades and moving between grade levels. The Classroom I believe that being organized is very essential to running a classroom effectively. However, I also believe that flexibility and adaptability are more important. These values are reflected in the way that I conduct my classroom. For example, I feel it is helpful to tell students every day what there homework is going to be, where some teachers have them copy down the schedule for the whole week. This is impractical to me, for having them be organized for the week is great, but if something else comes up along the way it must be changed. Updating this daily allows for me to see what students need to focus on, or what they dont need to do. It can appear chaotic in nature, but differentiation and having to adapt things is necessary. I also tend to run my classroom in a relaxed manner. Relaxed is in no way the same and lacking expectations or structure. While I tend to deal with situations in a calm manner, my students feed off of that energy as well. Structure is completely necessary, and once they have the solid structure and high expectations down, then there is room for flexibility. When it comes to discipline, I believe that positive reinforcement is an effective way to reward students for their accomplishments, while eliminating other behaviors. When there are negative behaviors occurring with students I believe it is necessary to address the

Running head: Philosophy of Education whole concern and find out what that child is looking for, suffering from, or seeking out. Identifying the root of the problem, tends to aid in lasting behavior improvement. On-going formative assessment is necessary to track the performance of students academically. Frequent, small informal assessments and checks for understanding are

crucial. Additionally, a variety of assessments, from project-based, to standards-based test are beneficial if you look at the results frequently, and adapt to the needs of the classroom. Conclusion In conclusion it is my own view that the teacher plays an extremely significant role in the lives of each student they come in contact with. It is their job, and my job, to guide students academically, socially, and emotionally. It is my responsibility to facilitate in the learning process and provide and opportunity for students to discover and awareness for their own learning. While academic achievement is a primary focus, so is shaping the character of each student. More importantly, it is the role of education to help form our future citizens in society. It is the influence of education and educators that can play a key role in who and what our young people become; the decisions they make, and the ways they will contribute to our nation. Each student deserves the right to equal opportunities within education and having the dedication of educators and the institution of education to do everything they can to help them succeed and achieve.

Running head: Philosophy of Education Works Cited Powell, Mary Jo (1994). Constructing knowledge in the classroom. Classroom Compass. Volume 1, Number 3. Retrieved from: http://www.sedl.org/scimath/compass/v01n03/ Matsuoka, Brigitte Magar (2004) Constructivism as a paradigm for teaching and learning. Thirteen EdOnline. Retrieved from: http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/concept2class/credits.html