After reading and investigating the various
philosophies, I have learned how each can be carried out to provide an effective,
interesting and intriguing classroom environment. In my own classroom, my philosophy will be a
combination of a teacher-centered approaches and student-centered approaches. Teacher-centered approaches will enable my
students to have disciplined minds thus becoming respectful citizens. Students who listen thoughtfully and
participate respectfully in classroom discussions learn various critical life
lessons. One being, they learn the worth
and wisdom of Western culture. Students will
also learn how to appreciate and honor those who brought them this heritage,
the guardians of their freedom and culture better known as their
educators. Student-centered approaches
will enable my students to embody human dignity as it is learned through my
democratic classroom. Democracy in
essence is learned like most things through experience, not necessarily books
or curriculum. All students flourish and
thrive in the classroom when they are respected and treated as an equal. That is a premise I believe all educators
should focus on and never lose sight of.
When we motivate, support and believe in our students there is truly no
limit as to what they can accomplish or do.
When we disregard or treat our students as beneath us, they are stifled
and not motivated when they are told what to do and how to think. As an educator, why would one ever want to do
that? Isn’t the purpose of teaching to
inspire and change the lives of all of our students? As students in my classroom learn to manage
their own learning, they will also master the most important lesson any school
or classroom can teach and that is the importance of the individual’s
ideas. When students learn the
importance of their individual ideas, they will become confident and competent
learners and decision makers in all aspects of their lives not just their
education. All educators can blend their
own notions of the five philosophies. No
philosophy is better than the other and each is influenced and shaped by the
philosophy of the school as well as the school district. This notion is important for future educators
who are deciding what school they should begin their careers. It is very important that one agrees,
supports and believes in the school’s philosophy and moral because one will be
spending the majority of their time and efforts there. In my own classroom, I will use all three of
the student-centered philosophies; progressivism, social reconstructioism, and
existentialism. In progressivism, my
role as the educator will be to guide and integrate learning activities so that
students can find meaning in their experiences as well as learn to problem
solve and become socially aware citizens.
In social reconstructionism, my role as the educator will be to provide
authentic learning activities so that my students will become passionate
learners. I will also instruct students in all of their academic subjects and
aim to improve society while promoting service, meaningful actions and
intelligence. In existentialism, my role
as the educator will be to seek out and relate to each and every single one of
my students regardless of their academic ability level honestly and
genuinely. I will also be very skilled
at creating a free, open and stimulating environment that ignites personal
responsibility and accountability in my students as well as the ability to
understand and appreciate their own unique individuality. In my own classroom, I will also dabble in
both of the teacher-centered philosophies, essentialism and perennialism. In essentialism, my role as the educator will
be to model academic and moral virtue by being the center of the classroom
during some lessons and activities. I
believe we must learn both to listen and learn in order to be truly successful
in whatever career path we choose later in life. My students will become culturally literate
individuals and educated model citizens who are not only prepared but leaders
in our competitive world and job market.
In perennialism, my role as the educator will correspond with essentialism
by serving as a scholarly role model who is philosophically oriented and aids
all of my students in seeking out the truth for themselves thus enabling them
to increase their own intellectual abilities as well as learn to appreciate
learning for themselves. I am so
thrilled, excited, passionate and motivated to teach in my own classroom. I cannot wait to be a confidant and role
model to each and every one of my students.
I also cannot wait to inspire and motivate them to become the best
individual they can be in and outside the classroom as well as aid them in
pursuing their own dreams. As the
education innovator John Dewey once said, “education is not a preparation for
life; education is life itself”.
Now it is YOUR time!! What do you think your education philosophy is? Why do you think philosophies are important to our educational system?
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