Teaching Philosophy

Jordan M. Schreuder
As a former University of Michigan athlete, my philosophy about education stems from my experiences as a part of a close-knit team. Anyone who knows a thing or two about Michigan Football and the legendary coach Bo Schembechler, knows that he emphasized one thing above all else: the Team, the Team, the Team! My own experiences as a member of the Michigan Mens Rowing Team and as a young educator continue to call attention to the very same beliefs that Bo embodied not only as a coach, but as a life-long mentor to the hundreds of young athletes that he led. What does it mean to be part of a team? First and foremost there has to be a unity of purpose and positivity; a team attitude. For any team, this means goals and objectives that everyone can buy into. Every child has the right to a great education, and they have to believe in the purpose of their learning. In order to be part of a safe, supportive learning community, students need to come to an understanding of what it means to treat each other with honor and respect. In an increasingly multicultural society, the importance of providing a space where students cultural backgrounds are respected and honored cannot be understated. Not only that, but this sense of community and multiculturalism enriches the classroom conversation by adding different perspectives! Students simply cannot be expected to engage in the classroom community if their racial and cultural autobiographies are kept silent or marginalized. This means that as the coach, I have to know my students backgrounds and identities. In order for them to trust their leader to guide them through the rigors of education, students have to see their backgrounds and identities in the classroom curriculum. Knowing and understanding student identities and seeing them as a whole person stems from simple things that I practice every day. I greet my students in the halls and at the door, welcome them back after a long absence or break, attend extracurricular events, and show genuine enthusiasm for teaching and working with them. When a team sees a leader heavily invested in his program, they begin to put their heart into everything that they do on that team. Part of this trust in our team and our purpose comes from a student-centered approach to classroom community and character development. There are two parts to this. First, I believe strongly in understanding students physical, emotional, spiritual and cognitive needs that go beyond the curriculum. Through every day teachable moments, students experience growth in character and habits of mind that will help them become upstanding members of the community. This can be achieved through weekly or monthly focuses on habits of mind such as respect, kindness, perseverance, responsibility, compassion, integrity, and self-advocacy to name a few. The second part of this student centered approach comes from establishing protocols for classroom conduct. This may be something as simple as setting down a student generated list of expectations on a classroom poster. Not only does this procedure give students a sense of ownership over their classroom community and culture, but gives me the opportunity to step out of the picture and remind them that they set their own expectations and we all agreed upon them as a team. To me, thats powerful.

Once those expectations and guidelines are made clear, it also means that they need to be followed by every single student. For Bo, it meant that even if you were an All-American tailback before the Ohio State Game, if you broke curfew, you sat the bench. In the classroom, it means that all students need to be held accountable to the same expectations. When these expectations are in place I believe that its exceedingly important to follow these protocols from day one. Ive seen this in every school that I have been a part of so far. If the expectations are set up and followed immediately, students will begin to self-discipline down the road. One of the main tenets of education that I learned exceedingly well from my mentors in education is this: great classroom management is proactive! Even one week into the semester may be too late to implement a plan for classroom management. It needs to be planned out and in place from the start, even with the little things. Its that important! For example, Im a firm believer in call and response and similar communal strategies that can become rallying cries for students. Who am I? I am a Champion! I also believe that starting class off with bell-work, a daily message to students, and written objectives to copy in their planners all help students set the tone for the rest of the class period while slowly transitioning their minds back into language arts. This brings me to the most important part; planning for substance, relevance, and delivery of instruction. As important as planning for classroom management strategies and protocols may be, lesson planning for explicit instruction and student engagement is even more important. The quickest way to curb misbehavior is to give students substance and relevance. As a teacher I constantly strive to deliver content in a way that is meaningful, purposeful, and differentiated to each of my students. They know our team goals and our daily objectives from the first few minutes of class, and over time as I begin to build positive relationships with students I can present material tailored to the distinct cultures of each class and each distinct student. I have seen time and time again how differentiated instruction is simply a best practice for all students, not just students who qualify for accommodations and modifications. This can be accomplished through practices such as reviewing previous topics and revisiting for comprehension, graphic organizers, flexible timelines for submission, modified assignments, seating arrangements, and one-on-one conferencing with students. The final element to my beliefs about teaching comes largely from my experience with parental involvement. In my experience, the highest functioning students in the classroom had the support of their parents. In any school community this can be a challenge, but having the parents on your bench is the whole ball game. Just like classroom management, great parental involvement is proactive! This can be done through weekly emails concerning class topics and content, inviting parents in to observe class, frequent calls home, and parent conferences. I love calling home about positive things I see happening in the classroom, and parents love it too. The important part is starting positively the first few weeks, and establishing a rapport with parents so that when issues do come up, I can come to them for help and support. I want them on my team! As somebody who was rigorously involved in my school community as a student, I have committed myself to following the same guidelines as a teacher. When parents see teachers around afterschool activities, community events, and athletics, word spreads quickly. Needless to say, parents, much like students, quickly develop a sense of who they want to trust with their childs education. It all goes back to the team, the team, the team.