Water it and it Will grow: My Philosophy 1

Water It and It Will Grow: My Philosophy of Education

If I were to attempt to place my finger on any exact educational philosophy, I would miss

the target every single time. It’s a challenging task to clearly pin-point what my philosophy of

education is, however; if I missed an exact target (specific philosophy) and landed on different

aspects of educational philosophies, then I would have a combination of philosophical attributes

that could be molded into one. In my professional opinion, I believe that my educational

philosophy portrays characteristics of my personal values, beliefs, and cultural background. As a

result, I can acknowledge that my philosophy stems from progressivism, essentialism, and bits of

reconstructionism. Nevertheless, as mentioned above, specific aspects of my personal-filter truly

underlie the foundation of my educational philosophy which ultimately identifies how I approach

an array of questions relating to teaching 9th grade (freshman) mathematics.

Young Minds to be Watered

The term freshman illustrates exactly what new incoming ninth grade students are—fresh

kids on the block. They’re at the ripe age of 13 or 14 and often eager to learn. They are excited

for new goals and accomplishments on their four year journey; nonetheless, they are nervous and

a bit frightened of what may lay ahead. Algebra 1 and geometry are a couple encounters that

these freshmen will need to tackle and I intend to provide them with the tools and skills to

succeed.

School’s Role in Society & Purpose of Education

In the Western world, school has become an integral part of our culture and society. As

teachers and students, we spend majority of the year on campuses and in classrooms. Much of

what we learn and put into action stems from schools. So, what is the role of schools in our

society? There are many different opinions and perspective regarding this matter, yet there isn’t
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any one correct answer (most would agree). Nevertheless, schools are in place to act as a

platform for young minds, such as freshmen, to grow intellectually, personally, and in my

opinion, spiritually. Schools need to provide an environment that is safe and open to free speech

where ideas can be embraced or challenged without the use of physical or verbal violence. On

the same token, they need to provide the resources and tools for students to be able to solve

problems, both in the classroom and in the real-world. Lastly, the role of schools should be the

foundation where students learn how to be upstanding citizens in our society. With clear

understanding of what I believe should be the roles of schools; what is the purpose of education

and how do we ensure fair services to all students?

I’m a strong believer in education. It gives us an opportunity to make well-informed

decisions so that our circumstances are favorable. To some extent, the purpose of education is to

cultivate a foundation of “knowledge” to be applied to situations that are common and foreign. I

believe that education should be a transfer of intelligence, common values such as fairness (sense

of democracy), moral and cultural values, and the concept that there is absolute truth and not

only relative truth. In doing so, we as teachers should spark the interest of students in the idea of

“change,” for example, allowing them to modify their perspectives based on newly acquired

information (knowledge) instead of utilizing education as a platform to push agendas to shape

specific change in society. Education should also serve as a medium that encourages hard work

and discipline. “Love your neighbor as you love yourself.” Each and every day I attempt to put

this slogan into action whether I’m at home, in the public, and especially at school. I believe that

my students are an extension of my family and should be treated with fairness, compassion, and

brotherly love. As a teacher, I pride myself in practicing what I preach so that students can

observe a genuine attitude that creates a Segway for authenticity. For example, if I allow one of
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my freshman students to retake a test or quiz even though they don’t have a qualifying score and

another student is aware of that and request to retake as well, then I allow both students to do so.

By doing so, I demonstrate to my students that favoritism has no place in my book. Along with

fairness and compassion, inclusion plays a major role in the way I treat my students. I express

that each and every one of them have an equal opportunity to succeed in my mathematics class.

Also, they have equal access to me for additional help or guidance. In addition to ensuring

service to all students, we must understand our views toward students and their purpose in their

education.

My View of the Student & Their Role in Education

My geometry freshmen are the heart and soul of Maui High school. They are the

substance of things yet to be seen. Moreover, they are the foundation that sets the tone for next

four years. As mentioned above, I view my students as an extension of my immediate family and

consider them a vital piece of my life. Furthermore, they are the reason I go to work every single

day. Just like in immediate families, each member is an important part of a healthy and

functioning family. It’s no different in my classroom. My students are part of an extended family

with responsibilities toward their education and it’s imperative that we work in harmony to

achieve success. They need to be accountable for their education, taking pride in their work

understanding that it takes time and effort to persevere through challenges such as classwork,

homework, assessments, individual work, and group work. As young adults they’re still growing

and need educational guidance to build confidence in themselves to develop a sense of

independence. In order to bring this mental capacity to fruition, I, as a teacher, need to

comprehend my role and primary responsibilities towards my students.

My Role as the Water Bearer (Teacher)

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To ensure that students are able to grow confidence in themselves and build a sense of

independence, it’s the responsibility of the teacher to “water” and nourish their whole being to

set them up for success. Also, they need to nurture an environment to encourage a student’s

growth in personality, character, social well-being, and intelligence—critical to a teacher’s role.

In addition to aforementioned duties, my role as a teacher is to be a leader in the classroom. As a

leader, I aspire to always be a positive role model exuding integrity, humility, honesty, and a

sense of compassion. Moreover, as a leader, maintaining order and managing classroom behavior

is part of my responsibilities. My students accept the fact that I’m authoritative yet democratic.

These two roles are important to develop a friendly and professional teacher-student relationship

where my students respect me and my teaching in the classroom but trust me enough to speak to

me on a personal level. With such a diverse group of students, it’s not enough to merely be a

positive influence. As instructors we need to impart knowledge and intellect to our students so

they may demonstrate mastery. For example, through the use of assessments my freshmen

students can exhibit their understanding of the Pythagorean Theorem. However, passing on

knowledge simply for memorization should not be the means to an end. We need to instill

intelligence that can be transferred to solve real-world problems. A key role for a successful

school year is to connect and develop teacher-parent-&-student relationships. This creates a

segway for parent inclusion with the hopes of creating open communication so that the student is

who benefits most.

Curriculum Design, Instruction, & Classroom Management

With an ever-increasing diverse group of students in the classroom, it’s significant to

develop a curriculum that maximizes the learning potential of students. To do so, I believe that

part of a well-designed curriculum involves thought-out and organized instruction. The

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instruction should resonate with the ideology of “I do, we do, and you do.” By implementing this

format, I can demonstrate to my students how to understand a mathematical concept such as

solving systems of equations by elimination through a step-by-step process in the “I do”

segment. In the “we do” portion, students have the opportunity to enhance comprehension by

collectively going through the same process to increase understanding. After a quick check of

their knowledge, students are prepared for the “you do” stage. Here, my students can work in

groups to assist each other and build confidence to ultimately demonstrate their knowledge in

front of the classroom or when called upon to participate. This type of design allows my students

to work independently to improve skills, and then collectively in groups they share ideas to

further progress skills and comprehension. To accommodate struggling or ELL students, my

curriculum would include partnering with them one-on-one to further demonstrate and identify

procedures to increase understanding. Furthermore, the curriculum would allow for modification

of their work to lighten the intensity of the material. My curriculum would reflect individual

work, group work, and a collective body of work. For example, whole class lectures, small group

lectures with occasional hands-on activities, and independent self-directed learning. The goal of

my curriculum will reflect a combination of the ideas above to promote a sense of constructivism

through an accumulation of knowledge.

Final Thoughts

Over the course of this semester, although my teaching philosophy may change and alter

throughout my experiences and outcomes; I can truly state that my teaching ideology stems from

“person-first, student-second.” No matter how great of a teacher you are, if you can’t build a

meaningful relationship with your students where you can reach them, then they’ll never grow.