My Philosophy of Education :: Essays Papers

My Philosophy of Education I believe that education should be looked as as a desire to acquire all possible knowledge, not as a requirement or something that can be formally examined by standardized tests. There are numerous ways that children learn and I want to be able to encourage as much learning as possible for each child. I believe that using many methods of instruction is the most effective way of teaching to these various ways of learning. These methods include group work, hands-on activities, buddy work, etc. Assessment of children should follow the same idea. When children get the chance to perform on different assessments, they can adequately show their strengths and weaknesses. I do not wish to rely on tests only to assess the students in my class. Some types of assessment that I think should be inlcuded in a classroom are journals, presentations, projects and interviews. I also think that the classroom should be run with the help of the children. By distributing jobs among the childre n and everyone participating in the classroom, the students will form a sense of togetherness. This will eventually create a community within the classroom. I feel that this community of learners is essential for the students to perform effectively and efficiently. They will feel comfortable in the environment and will not be afraid to take risks or ask questions. The teacher will also be a member of this community and will not be seen as unapproachable or as the only leader. The teacher should also not be seen as the facilitator of all information in the classroom. The students should be looking to other sources for information, including each other, books, and technology. There should be many points of view exemplified in each subject area. The students will be able to state their opinion and also listen to the other students' views. I believe that the curriculum should be flexible. While teaching a certain subject, if the students wish to learn about something else or move into a different idea, I want to be able to do that. I do not want to say that we aren't going to have enough time to cover something.