Teaching Philosophy for Camille Dietz

My love affair with education began the day my Grandpa Lee taught me how to read. His

method for helping me to become literate was for me to "teach him the words" in our stories. He

put the choice in my hands at a young age and, because it was my choice, my personal passion

started to develop. It didn’t take me long to respond to the call to teach. I have eagerly placed

myself in educational settings through work experience and my schooling ever since.
My ideal classroom is a place where the physical walls seem to fall away with every

question, idea, and investigation that my students seek to understand about the greater world

around them. The goal of my teaching is to become a space creator for my students. They will

learn how to shed their culturally prescribed potential in favor of personal growth and individual

identity through community awareness, social justice, inclusion, and appropriate activism. In

order to facilitate this ideal, I will also be an engaged learner and a proponent for addressing

current educational issues that affect my students. Whether the climate surrounds racism,

poverty, national standards, school reform, or academic practices, to name a few, I will be

informed through evidence-based research, professional development and various instructional

strategies. Evolving my pedagogy with the ever-changing world is essential to my practice.

As an educator, it is my responsibility to create a foundation of support in the learning

environment. Seeking resources and communicating effectively with my teaching cohorts and

school administration will ensure a unity of purpose. Having the privilege of attaining my

education through the University of Utah and the UITE program, my teaching strategies have

been underscored by their mission for educators to “draw upon multidisciplinary research and

direct urban inquiry to serve all students well” (Urban Institute for Teacher Education Mission

Statement). Community partners will be invited into my classroom as valuable resources. In

addition, the parents and guardians of my students will be supported and encouraged to be active

participants in their child’s learning.

 Successful learning environments are shaped by lessons that engage and motivate

learners toward action. My students will discover how to master respect, curiosity, resilience,

and problem solving techniques through social justice inquiry. Multicultural education in my

classroom will address diversity and tolerance while celebrating differences through inclusion of

multiple perspectives in the classroom curriculum. The opportunities I have been given to

participate in Title I school settings in Utah have deeply influenced my desire to work with low-

income families, students of color, and English Language Learners.

It’s important for my students to understand that each person brings into the classroom a

set of values, ideas, beliefs, and unique ways of learning. In order to capitalize on these assets,

my lesson plans will incorporate visual, auditory, and kinesthetic strategies integrating Bloom’s

Taxonomy and differentiating instruction to meet the needs of my students. Exploration of

abstract concepts will be investigated through the arts and sciences with a systematic literacy

approach. Close daily evaluation and varied assessment measures will frame the zone of

proximal development for my students and provide a trajectory for successful future mastery. My

students will explore the core standards in a hands-on approach, working with peers as

collaborators, and publishing their own products. My daily curriculum will drive student inquiry

and promote creativity.

There was a time when I was offered a high paying position at a corporate office.

Instead, I opted to be a Para Educator for a fifth grade Special Education classroom. From that

point on, I have continued toward my degree with zeal despite numerous tests and trials. I will be

a successful teacher when my students will leave my classroom knowing that a challenge does

not promise failure and mistakes are to be celebrated learning experiences. The choice to build

on their knowledge is theirs. Thus, my students will become active agents of their own learning

in a classroom “without walls”.