My Philosophy

To me teaching is an art. It is something that requires passion and flare. Creativity is essential and patience should be listed as required in the job description. I believe that teachers are heroes in disguise. They show students what they can become and support their dreams and goals even if it is only for the duration of a year.

For myself, teaching has always been a profession that I have admired since I was a young child. This semester I had the opportunity to learn about teaching as reflective practice and it is because of this knowledge that I now understand why certain teachers I have had over the course of my education have been superior to others. These teachers were superior because they never became complacent with doing just a good job; they strived for excellence and understood that this high standard of teaching could not be achieved if they did not keep improving or trying new teaching methods. These outstanding teachers truly embraced learning as being lifelong and were constantly reflecting on how they could help my classmates and I learn better. Teaching as a reflective process is such an important message to me as I continue through my teaching journey because I truly believe that reflection is a ‘life-long learning tool’. By valuing the student’s perspective, other teacher’s opinions/suggestions, and by reflecting on what I am doing and how effective my teaching methods are I am confident that I will become a great teacher. I will become a great teacher because I will constantly be examining my own teaching practices and if I am having trouble with a certain topic I will not hesitate to get my student’s or peer’s input. I will embrace teaching as a ‘profession’ not a ‘job’ and will find new ways to help students learn. I will help students become the best that they can be because that is what teachers do.