My philosophy about what it means to teach is multifaceted.

On one
level, teaching is explaining learning material. Teaching may also mean
showing techniques to retain the material. Teaching is also about showing
students how to think about the material they have learned and how to apply
what they have learned to other areas.
Teaching also means helping students learn at their own pace. I believe
that when teachers teach, they should accept all people for who they are,
while recognizing that all students have potential that they should work
towards fulfilling.
Teaching also means being a role model. I would like for my students to
learn from the way I show respect for others, to treat people with respect.
Sociocultural theory is, a theory that thinking and learning are highly
influenced by social interaction, language and culture. (Trawick-Smith, 57)
My view of what it means to be a teacher is directly related to sociocultural
theory because as a teacher in the classroom, it will be my goal to create a
positive environment where students can strive to fulfill their potential.
In Resilience by Bonnie Benard, turnaround teachers/mentors are
discussed. They are identified, first and foremost, as caring. (Benard, 69).
What I believe it means to teach and to be a teacher this definition.
What roles should be carried out by the teacher to develop
appropriate learning environments for students?

The roles of teacher to develop appropriate learning environments

should include being the classroom designer in several ways.
The teacher should decide the seating arrangement and how the
bulletin boards, bookcases and posters are placed.
The teacher should create a calm, peaceful and friendly working
environment. The teacher should create an environment that promotes the
love of learning and curiosity about the world and students interests.
I believe that students should be viewed as people that should be
treated with respect. Students are the future of society, and it is extremely
important to teach students the information in the curriculum. It is also
important to teach students about having good character and being good
citizens of the world.
My view is confirmed with a quote from Resilience, What We Have
Learned by Bonnie Bernard. Resilience research tells all of us concerned
with teaching that engaging each students intrinsic motivation is key. It is by
meeting you peoples basic psychological needs to experience belonging and
safety , to gain competence, to feel what they are learning is meaningful,
and to develop autonomy that schools can tap this intrinsic motivation.
(Bernard, 68).
I feel that students should take an active role in the learning process.
Students should learn how they learn best. By teaching students how to

understand metacognitive skills students can take an active role in their

learning process.
My belief that metacognition is extremely important is affirmed in Early
Childhood Development, A Multicultural Perspective by Jeffrey Trawick-Smith.
In primary years, metacognition enhances the ability to remember
information. Children can now consciously guide their own memory
processes, using strategies of rehearsal, labeling and organization, and
paying attention. (Trawick-Smith, 392)
I believe that a students age and developmental functioning level will
determine how I teach in order for me to teach within a students proximal
zone of development.
The concept of the zone of proximal development was established by
sociocultural theorist Lev Vygotsky. The zone of proximal development is a
period during problem solving when a task is just beyond a childs level of
mastery. This is a time when an indirect prompt or question can help children
solve the problem independently. (Trawick-Smith, 59).
It is logical that if material is too difficult for children to learn, that they
wont be able to learn and master the information independently. If tasks are
too easy, students will become bored. I believe that creating gradual and
realistic challenges in learning teaching new material is the best way for
children to build on what they have learned.

The evaluation techniques I would use would be formative and

summative assessments. I would check to see if benchmarks, objectives and
goals were being met. I would evaluate by compiling portfolios of work within
the various subjects that I teach. I would also evaluate students by giving
surveys and asking questions about how they feel they are doing in each
subject.
Family involvement plays a very important role in the teaching and
learning process. Family can encourage children to do well in school. Families
can create positive home environments, so that when children get to school,
they are ready to learn. Families can read together, go places together and
do all kinds of things that could be enrich their lives and enhance childrens
school experience.

References

Bernard, B. (2004). Resiliency, What We Have Learned. San Fransisco:

WestEd.
Sullivan, A.L. (2010, November). Preventing Disproportionality: A Framework
For Culturally Responsive Assessment. National Association of School
Psychologists Communique, Vol. 39(3), Retrieved from

http://www.nasponline.org/publications/cq/39/3/Preventingdisproportionality.a
spx
Salend, S. J; Garrick Duhaney, L. M; Montgomery, W. (2002, SeptemberOctober). A Comprehensive Approach to Identifying and Addressing Issues of
Disproportionate Representation. Remedial and Special Education, 23(5),
289.
Salend, S. J; Garrick Duhaney, L. M; (2005, March). Understanding and
Addressing the
Disproprtionate Representation of Students of Color in Special Education.
Intervention in
School and Clinic, 213-221.
Trawick-Smith, J. (2014). Early Childhood Development, A Multicultural
Perspective. Upper Saddle River: Pearson.