[TEACHING

PHILOSOPHY ]

Name : Noora Ebrahim Mohamed

ID: H00226806
Introduction

I believe that the children are our future, teach them well and let them lead the way,

show them all the beauty they possess inside, give them a sense of pride. This passage from

an old song resonates in my head even until now because the message is so profound and it

leaves a wonderful impression about childrens potential. Teaching nowadays has become more

challenging with increasing educational options among young children in our programs and

school. In this generation of digital era, teaching methods have to be flexible in order to foster

and sustain students interests and disposition to learn. Even our society now virtually expects

everyone in the population to function beyond the minimum standard of literacy (Neuman et.al,

2000). My role as a future educator is critical for children are our future generation of leaders.

My desire for teaching began to spark when I encountered an English teacher during middle

school. She was an influential person who inspired me to pursue this profession.

Planning for Better Learning

There is not one method or approach in teaching because of the considerable diversity

in childrens oral and written language experience. Thats why I must be careful in planning

effective instructions which include rich interactions, demonstrations and models of literacy in

the course of activities that make sense to young children. Teachers must allow them to express

their views and opinions for contributes to personal development like self-esteem, cognitive

abilities, social skills and respect for others. The school experience must teach a broad range of

language and literacy knowledge and skills to provide a solid foundation on which extensive

levels of reading and writing ultimately depend (Neuman et.al, 2000).

Therefore, I want to be confident in teaching by studying my lessons beforehand,

learning new skills and strategies and to always collaborate on my teaching teams. No matter

what the lesson goals are, it must be student centered and my students need always to come
first rather than achieving my desired goals. I want to be open to change, to appreciate some of

my fellow teachers if they correct me. Also, I want to have feedback from them on my teaching

performance so they can give me suggestions for my professional growth. Careful goal planning

is crucial and it must highlight your areas that need development and find ways for their

improvement (Brookhart, 2008).

UAE Vision 2021

Our country wants young learners to become globally competitive to be able to meet

global standard in educational system. In the past few years, the UAE was rank among the

lowest performing countries in reading literacy according to the survey done by PISA

(Programmed for International Student Assessment) last 2010 and 1/3 of students do not reach

baseline level in reading literacy (OSullivan, 2009). According to OSullivan (2009) reading

among young people in the UAE is deteriorating were it rooted from many factors such as

follows:

Addiction to technology like social network sites and online games

Lack of reading materials at home and reading culture is neither practice by parents.

Absence of literacy tradition like lacking of general background knowledge

Using colloquial language speech instead of practicing classical Arabic comprehension

In another study of OSullivan (2004), he states that among Arab college students

especially in the UAE have a significant deficit in their English language reading skills which

often seen as rooted in ineffective and inefficient prior learning experience at school. One

reason is that previous school educators may have failed to instill the right strategy and

motivation of learning English as secondary language that leads to poor foundation of English

vocabulary.

In order to address this concern, UAE launch a Vision 2021 National Agenda to develop a first-

rate education that will require a complete transformation of the current educational system and
teaching method. This is also to set a target that our students will be rank among the best in the

world, not just in reading but in mathematics and science.

Teachers are our nation buildersthe strength of every profession in our country grows

out of the knowledge and skills that teachers help to instill in our children (Duncan, 2015). So I

want to help achieve my country's goal. Firstly, I want to develop teaching skills and strategies

appropriate for productive learning by changing traditional way of educating students by using a

variety of methods that meets my students need. Like for example, I used books with characters

familiar to my students and that lead them to become more attentive and engage in the class.

Secondly, to break the barrier for students who perceive their teacher as scary, strict or

apathetic and develop a healthy relationship towards them. Then, to motivate them to become a

good citizen of our country in a little way they can and shape their young minds in good works.

Children are the hope of our nation and one predictor whether a child will function competently

in school and go on to contribute actively in our increasingly literate society is the level to which

child progresses in reading and writing.

Improve Behaviorism and Personality

I believe that if you train a child in the way he should go, when they grow old they will not

depart from it. This means we must not only educate children but we must also teach those

good manners and right conduct. So its not just teaching lessons but also encouraging students

to develop qualities that will build their sense of self and awareness to the world. While children

are at a young age, I want to instill good attitudes like being responsible for their own learning

and use that learning for good. I will teach my students to be respectful to their teacher and

fellow students. It is essential to teach them the appropriate behavior at a young age for it will

shape them into a good person when they become an adult. I will also always encourage them

to continue to seek learning wherever they are and to never be weary of doing good works.
Learning Experience

Currently, I plan for more student-centered lessons for it is essential and urgent to teach

children to read and write competently, enabling them to achieve todays high standard of

literacy. I assess my students reading ability and group them, then design an activity appropriate

to their level. I collaborate with students in creating rubric or scoring guide that we use during an

activity. This type of classes encourages the students to produce and participate more to show

their understanding (Roessingh, and Chambers. 2011). Another example of an activity I did was

reading authentic literature that has proven to improve student engagement and therefore gain a

sense of self and awareness around them. I also tried to improve the students language skills

by using a combination of reading and writing strategies and give more speaking sections to

boost their oral confidence especially in voicing out their views and opinions. The student-

centered class and peer presentations could serve me well to achieve this goal (Ellis, 2003).

Another example of this type of activity is reading and understanding words that students always

use or encounter in their everyday lives. Instead of the teacher, the students themselves choose

the words they want to learn and share it in the whole class.

Conclusion:

I believe that my role as a future educator can bring to play a variety of teaching

strategies that can encompass great diversity at school. Helping my country's vision to achieve

is my inspiration to take this profession. I want to help build a brighter future for our younger

generations. I want to teach not just because it is prerequisite for learning but to help breed

young ones of this country to be well-developed, well-equipped, well-prepared and globally

competent in the future.

References:

Brookhart, S. (2008). How to give effective feedback to your students. Alexandria: ASCD.
Duncan, A. 2015. Why teaching is the Most Important Profession?.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/leading-from-classroom-arne-duncan

Ellis, R. (2003). Task based language learning and teaching . UK: Oxford University Press.

Neuman, S., Copple, C. and Bredekamp, S. 2000. Learning to Read and Write:

Developmentally appropriate practices for young children

Roessingh, H. and Chambers, W. (2011) Project-Based learning and pedagogy in teacher

preparation:staking out the theoretical mid-ground. International Journal of Teaching and

Learning in Higher Education. 23 (1).60-71.

OECD (2010), PISA 2009 Results: Executive Summary

https://www.oecd.org/pisa/pisaproducts/46619703.pdf

OSullivan, A. 2009. Reading in the Gulf: Is it time for a re-focus?

http://marifa.hct.ac.ae/files/2009/04/Reading-in-the-Gulf-Is-it-Time-for-a-Re-Focus.pdf

OSullivan, A. 2004. Reading Arab college students: Issues in the United Arab Emirates Higher
College of Technology
http://www.academia.edu/1012284/Reading_and_Arab_college_students_Issues_in_the_United
_Arab_Emirates_Higher_Colleges_of_Technology