Philosophy of Teaching

My philosophy of teaching revolves around deliberative discussion and doing

history, which focuses on rational thinking and providing evidence for your point of
view. Social studies is unique, in that, it is almost always changing. It is changing
because history is written by people who interpret event, documents, and oral
traditions. Doing History involves actually looking at historical evidence, like
documents and interviews, for things like historical importance and factors that
would have influenced the author. Students cannot Do History by sitting in their
chairs and listening to me lecture. They need to be involved. My job is to be a
facilitator, not a lecturer. I will facilitate their discussions and add point for them to
consider. I will model how to analyze primary sources and I will give them choices
when choosing which sources to analyze. Students will not only learn history but
they will learn many other skills which will benefit them outside of my classroom.
Facilitating my students allows them to build their confidence and not solely rely on
me. They will be more independent, which on turn builds confidence in their abilities
to reason and defend their positions.