My Education Philosophy

            In order to be a successful science teacher, I believe communication and trust between myself and the students, and amongst the students themselves are two of the most vital aspects in fostering creativity, autonomy, and critical thinking. This will prepare the class to be able to understand class material more easily, and more importantly to begin being able to have insightful thought about questions and aspects of the real world, the defining characteristic of all scientists. The class will be looked at not as a collective whole, but as a group made up of unique individuals that will learn from me and from each other. By promoting communication and trust between the students, students will learn from each other, and about each other, creating a multicultural learning environment that will develop the students’ social skills in a world that is constantly and rapidly getting more diverse. To fulfill the above objectives I will 1) peak students’ interest in science 2) create an atmosphere of respect, and 3) strengthen students’ cognitive abilities.

            Getting students interested in the class material is the first step to ensuring the other two objectives fall into place. Incorporating local features, real-world events, and demonstrations into the learning experience will cause the class to be drawn to the material because the strategies allow the students to relate it to something they have experienced in the past. By acquiring students’ attention through these methods I naturally facilitate meaningful classroom discussion, which in turn causes the students to practice and improve their critical thinking skills. Integrating an aspect of the real world that students can already relate to is a method that I plan on routinely using, as it fosters the insightful thought and meaningful discussion that proper scientists acquire through the same types of practice as mentioned above.

            It is important to note that I will use any opportunity I get to incorporate local businesses, parks, museums, and other natural features into class material. I believe that local features are unique components in a child’s life that should be taught in order to accustom the student to his/her local surroundings and what makes it special. This creates a sense of wonder and pride in the students about where they live and how their lives are affected by the local natural features.

            Creating an atmosphere of respect is critical for the students to have meaningful learning through involved discussions and group activities. It also ensures to minimize negative influences that are all too common in today’s youth. By having respect in the classroom I guarantee that a learning environment that allows the students to focus their attention on the class material, and effectively communicate with me and each other.

            Along with this respect for each other, I want each student to develop a sense of respect for him/herself. I think that there is a growing lack of interest in the different fields of science in today’s society, and this is unfortunate because we live in a time when the technology is available or emerging to begin doing incredibly extraordinary things. I want to instill a deep sense of respect in each student and get them to believe that any one of them is capable of achieving great things. By successfully conducting meaningful learning through constructive learning theory, students will begin creating a network incorporating the new knowledge with prior relevant knowledge. This improves upon critical thinking skills, which will bolster a student’s confidence in his/her abilities to begin thinking like an effective scientist.

            Strengthening students’ cognitive abilities is obviously an important skill to me as I have brought up methods and ideas previously that discussed cultivating critical thinking or cognitive skills. The essence of science is questioning aspects of the natural or manmade world that requires advanced thinking skills that allows the aspect to be researched and better understood. Building on cognitive thinking skills in the classroom is therefore an essential part to teaching any successful science class. In making sure I peak students’ interest in the material and create a respectful atmosphere, I generate an environment that fosters and builds on a student’s abstract thinking processes. By creating lesson plans that keep the students in the zone of proximal development, students’ cognitive abilities will constantly be challenged and improved. To ensure all students are appropriately being challenged (not being underwhelmed or overwhelmed), I will utilize different forms of formative assessment to make sure everyone in the class is learning the material and are on pace with the curriculum.

            Creating an atmosphere of trust and communication is the first step in developing a successful learning experience for students in a science class. Trust is gained through mutual respect between the students and teacher, and getting the students excited about science. Communication comes out of the sense of trust I build in the classroom, and leads to a respectful, engaged environment where the students learn the class material while building on their cognitive skills. My students will come out of the class with improved cognitive abilities and be more ready to think about aspects of the world in new and abstract ways. This is one way, my way, to bring back the enthusiasm science deserves in society, especially when we are in a technological revolution where ideas that were once thought impossible are becoming increasingly more realistic every day.