1

Personal Teaching Philosophy

By
Bryan Cruz

California State University, Chico

 2

Education is a process that goes through many changes throughout history. Before the

creation of formal schools, relatives were expected to teach their younger family members. Now

there are teachers that all go through a program to determine if they are fit to teach. Many

teachers go through the same program, but disagree on how to teach their students. A teaching

philosophy is a personal belief of teaching and learning. Some teachers envision a classroom

with very quiet students sitting in rows and listening to the lecture. Others imagine a classroom

where the students are discussing topics with each other. Every teacher will have different views

on the most effective method to teach.

My schooling involved a traditional method of teaching in many schools today. The

teachers would introduce a chapter. The students read the chapter and answered questions in a

workbook. The teachers would have a review for an upcoming test. The students took the tests

and were graded based on their homework, classwork, and exam scores. I always did great in

school but these methods did not help with critical thinking. They also did not do much group

work, so I was not able to gain experience working with a team. I believe these learning

techniques are very helpful in the real world.

I believe that effective classrooms are based on social cognitive learning theories. The

reason I want to create a social environment in my classroom is because of my past experience of

schooling which mainly involved lectures and studying for tests. Many students in my school did

not like group projects and presentations. My opinion is students are always told to be quiet

whenever they are loud, so they are not used to talking to each other. Discipline was much more

important than the learning environment of the student. My first three years of high school were

not taken seriously, so during my senior year I tried to challenge myself by taking Advanced

Placement classes. During the first week I realized I was much different than most of the students
 3

in Advanced Placement. Many of the other students were able to articulate their opinions and

back it up. Those classes provided a space for classroom discussions with other students. I recall

thinking to myself that my interest levels wouldve been much higher during high school if the

majority of my classes took this approach.

Many students would benefit in a classroom centered on interactions between the

students and the social environment. The textbook Teach by Janice Koch (2014), the author

states that according to social cognitivists, students would learn , in part, by observing you;then

they would learn more by doing a similar problem themselves; and they would be further served

by using manipulative materials and working on exchanging units with their peers in a group

(p.74). This is a great way to involve students in multiple learning experiences. The student will

have more than one chance to absorb the content. Some people will argue that students that do

not like to participate are going to suffer in this learning environment. Even shy people will listen

to the information and it will also help in the future. The shy students might even be more willing

to participate in a smaller group setting. Speaking in front of a classroom of thirty people might

be a daunting task, but speaking in front of four peers will be much less intimidating.

My curriculum will be based on the students critical thinking and how the children

interact in a group setting. I want my students to be able to make a statement and back it up. The

group setting is beneficial because other students can help each other. Students can learn by

themselves, but they will only be informed of the viewpoint from the teacher. Considering other

viewpoints, the students will be able to gain knowledge as a collective unit. When you learn

individually, there is a chance that you misinterpret the information. Discussing the information

as a group is a great way to examine the quality of the information. This is the reason why peer-

reviewed journals are the most credible sources. This type of learning will also help with critical
 4

thinking. Instead of assigning straight forward questions in workbooks, I will attempt to provide

questions that will force students to dig a little deeper in analyzing the information.

Another aspect of teaching that I want to focus on how the children want to learn. Many

teachers struggle with discipline in classrooms. There are even many discipline workshops on

how to correct inappropriate behavior. Some educators blame the kids, others believe it is the

parents responsibility. I believe the main issue is the tasks that are being assigned. I will take

into consideration the interests of the students and teach based on their personalities. My

curriculum should be based on the students and they should influence it. One researcher believes

that evidence indicates that planned learning experiences often appear to be meaningless and

uninvolving (Watson, 2001, p. 142). The students will be much more involved if they have a

say on the type of work assigned in class. There is a big difference in commanding a student to

complete a specific task to providing support to a student in a project he/she is passionate about.

The student in the latter situation is much more encouraged to exceed the expectations.

I will make this learning visible by letting the students know that they will be working

together to learn. I will take a couple days to create an environment where the children are

comfortable with each other. I would want all my students to be aware that they have a voice in

the classroom. I will set the standard of putting the students in groups so they can be relaxed

about the situation. The way I grade my students will reflect the teaching environment I want to

create. I will not only grade based on assignments completed and test scores, but classroom

participation will be heavily considered. I will introduce certain roles for group work with a set

responsibilities. Once the children learn how to work in groups, I will allow them to figure out

their own roles in groups. I will pay attention to how they behave in their groups and even allow

the students to assess themselves and their group members.

 5

As teachers, we should take advantage of all the resources provided. Our own students

can be a resource to each other and they can effectively collaborate once they learn the behavior.

No student will be left behind if every student is involved. They will check up on each other.

They will start to become close and care for each other. Many students grow up together in

public schools, yet they do not talk to each other. Networking is always mentioned to be an

essential skill, yet public schools do not teach students how to network in a classroom. This type

of learning goes beyond the classroom and helps students with building communities.
 6

References

Koch, J. (2014). Teach. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.

Watson, J. (2001). Social constructivism in the classroom. Support for learning, 16(3), 140.