Philosophy of Teaching
As a teacher it is my calling to give my students the skills necessary to be productive successful citizens capable of setting goals for themselves and able to figure out how to best meet those goals, and if necessary to find the needed help to meet their goals. This means they need basic academic skills, but also cognitive abilities to determine how to use the skills they have and the character to use their abilities to better themselves and those around them. I learned as a child that it was important for me to be independent. I grew up in a broken home so often had to care for myself and my younger brothers. If I wanted to do something I had to find away to make it happen for myself, so it was important for me to learn as much as possible. But I also learned that there are caring people who were willing to help if I was willing to seek their aid. In my classroom I care about the success of my students and am constantly seeking to find ways to do better as a teacher. I believe this is what Dr. McCoy describes as a real-time teacher (Lane, 2008). It is also important to me that my students become as independent as possible, so I encourage them to think and decide for themselves as much as possible. This I feel reflects my participatory leadership style as described by Kendra Cherry (2012). I often refuse to answer a direct question that I think my student could answer for themselves if they think through the situation. Instead I help them think through the situation and help them see what the appropriate choice would be. I feel this is empowering for my students and helps to develop their sense of control, independence, and ability to think through a situation and make appropriate choices for themselves. As I show my belief in their abilities to make choices and to correct mistakes they make, this helps them to grow in their own belief in themselves and their sense of importance. This will make it possible for them to grow up to be someone capable of leading from any chair as described by Zander (2000), and these confident children will grow ready and desiring to contribute to their world.
References
Kendra Cherry, About.com Guide. (2012). What Is Democratic Leadership? [article] Retrieved from http://psychology.about.com/od/leadership/f/democratic-leadership.htm.
Lane, Barry [Barrylane55]. (2008, July 18). The ABCs of Educational Leadership [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRAZ4iu-EgA
Zander, Rosamund, and Benjamin Zander. (2000). The Art of Possibility. New York: Penguin Group.
References
Kendra Cherry, About.com Guide. (2012). What Is Democratic Leadership? [article] Retrieved from http://psychology.about.com/od/leadership/f/democratic-leadership.htm.
Lane, Barry [Barrylane55]. (2008, July 18). The ABCs of Educational Leadership [Video file]. Retrieved from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRAZ4iu-EgA
Zander, Rosamund, and Benjamin Zander. (2000). The Art of Possibility. New York: Penguin Group.