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Philosophy

A teacher can describe the teacher’s philosophy of education and demonstrate its

relationship to the teacher’s practice.

My original philosophy of education was written in the Spring of 2018, and though over

two years have passed, my philosophy hasn’t changed much. With every bit of added

information I have received, my philosophy has been become deeper and more refined. But

because my philosophy is so much based in my relationships with children and my desire to

respect and increase their autonomy, it has remained constant.

My own children’s Montessori education is what inspired me to finally take the leap and

pursue my dream of teaching. My philosophy is heavily influenced by Maria Montessori’s theory

and practice (Montessori, 1984). Montessori believes that education is made up of three main

parts: the child, the teacher and the environment. I would also add a fourth part, the curriculum

we teach. The Montessori curriculum, called Cosmic Education, is a part of my philosophy that

has been added since my original writing in 2018. “…The teacher must now appeal to that part

of the child, which finds itself in the world of the abstract… Now we must appeal to his soul…

We must give him grandeur. To begin with, let us present him with the world,” (Montessori,

1996, p. 19). Cosmic education is all about finding ways to grab the interest of the child and

show them their time and place in our universe. My philosophy is all about helping to guide the

child to realize their own potential and help them explore the world of education.

Education has so often been considered something that needs to be delivered. I am much

more of the constructionist ideology. I believe the teacher’s job is to be the “guide on the side”.

My belief is that we need to deliver the keys to children by teaching skills but let them explore

what interests them. In order to do this, we must really know the children in our classrooms to
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know what kind of lessons would spark their interests. Forming positive relationships with our

students is the first job of a good educator; it’s the best way to unlock their potential and gives

the greatest chance of them following your guidance. As Peter Johnston points out in Opening

Minds, “Our interactions with children in the classroom influence who they think they are and

what they think they’re doing. Over time, the interactions affect children’s values and

dispositions—how they value learning, themselves and each other…” (Johnston, 2012, loc.

2219). Teachers have an incredible responsibility towards helping children see themselves as

capable learners. We cannot teach children without their permission. Education requires students

who are willing and excited to learn.

Children are the whole purpose of why we teach. I teach because I love to see children

after they’ve made a connection or witness the triumph when they finally have a breakthrough. It

can be easy to underestimate children. But I believe the most important part of being a teacher is

showing respect for children. Children are incredibly capable, and so often this is ignored in

today’s society and educational system. Teachers are burning out due to lack of support, but they

can find a support system in their own classrooms from their students! I feel very strongly that

mixed age classrooms are essential to fostering positive peer connection and helping children

learn to be teachers as well as learners. “A positive working model of a mixed-age classroom

allows for the development of social skills as the teacher encourages cross-age interactions

through peer tutoring and shared discovery” (McClellan & Kinsey, 1997, p.3).

As I mentioned in my previous philosophy paper, having mixed age classes is also

important for forming the right classroom culture. The eldest children are looked to as the leaders

of the classroom, allowed to help teach and lead the younger students, while the youngest have

someone to look up to and have someone more than just the teacher to ask for help. Because of
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these mixed ages and because my use of small group instruction, children who are behind

academically or a little immature, don’t stick out quite as much. The range of maturity and

ability is in fact an aid to these students. And just like Vygotsky’s idea of the zones of proximal

development (Vygotsky, 1978. As cited in Slavin, 2018.) works in learning, it also works in

emotional regulation. Children can see that the calm and composure of a child, who is only a

couple years older than them, is an attainable goal.

This idea of letting children in the classroom lead can be hard for some educators. It takes

letting go of a certain amount of control. But so much empowerment can be derived from letting

children take control of their own education (within reason). Vito Perrone points out,

“[e]ngaging the students means taking them seriously, acknowledging that they are trying to

understand the world in which they live and that what is studied in school must make

connections to that underlying intention” (Perrone, 1991, p.27). It may seem overwhelming to let

students work in this way, and in most mixed age classrooms there is the issue of differentiation.

How can we make sure that each child is being challenged at the right level? That’s where the

importance of small group lessons comes in. Montessori education relies heavily on smaller

group lessons. This allows children of various academic levels to be work in the same

environment and still be challenged and allowed to practice skills at their own pace. But in order

for this to be possible, the classroom environment has to be set up in a way that allows for

children to work independently while these small lessons are happening. That’s where the third

part of the classroom comes in and must be given just as much attention as the teacher and the

children: the environment.

The environment doesn’t just mean the physical environment and tools that the children

will use. It also means the social and emotional environment that is created for and by the
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children. “To consider the school as the place where instruction is given is one point of view. But

to consider the school as a preparation for life is another. In the latter case the school must satisfy

all the needs of life.” (Montessori, 1996, p.5) School is not just a place where children practice

their math facts and learn to read. It is also often their first experience in creating a society of

their own, away from their caregivers. Because of this, we cannot just limit our instruction to

academics. We as educators must instruct the whole child; it is our responsibility to help prepare

children for the world they will enter as adults. One way to do this, is to encourage them to

interact often with the society they will be entering, “The child needs, then, to establish social

relationships in a larger society. The closed school, as it is conceived today, can no longer be

sufficient for him,” (Montessori, 1996, p.3). Preparing the environment with manipulatives

allows children to practice their skills in the classroom. But we must also let them practice their

skills and follow their interests in the outside world. We can’t be constrained by looking at just

the school building as a place for education; we must also encourage students to explore learning

opportunities anywhere they are interested. This leads me to the last topic I want to cover:

cosmic education.

“Cosmic education” is the idea that educational opportunities is all around us, and

anything can be a learning opportunity. It also focuses on the importance of cross curriculum

instruction. The sensitivity of the elementary child is that of absorption of culture, (Montessori,

1996). What better way to show the culture of the child’s time and place, than to help them

discover where we come from, and how we, as humans, have discovered what we know?

The entire cosmos is offered to the elementary child, because it is the only curriculum big

enough for their intellectual curiosity. And that is why in the elementary Montessori classroom,

we offer so many different areas of study, many of which are no longer offered to elementary
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children in mainstream education until high school. We want to give the children the widest

possible expanse of education to explore and discover who they are and what their role in the

world is.

In conclusion, my philosophy has grown deeper with the experiences I have received

from both my Montessori elementary training, and my time spent in the University of Alaska

Southeast’s Master of Teaching program. Having the opportunity to work with my student

teaching classroom, though, was the experience that has helped me the most. Working with

children in the classroom has taught me that above all, relationships are the foundation of

education. I cannot wait to continue to form relationships with amazing young minds for a very

long time to come.

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References:

Johnston, P.H. (2012) Opening minds: Using language to change lives. Kindle Edition.
Portsmouth, NH: Stenhouse Publishing.

McClellan, D.E. & Kinsey, S. (1997, April) Children's social behavior in relationship to
participation in mixed-age or same-age classrooms. [Research Report] Biennial meeting
of the society for research in child development (SRCD), Washington, DC. Retrieved
from ERIC https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED418771.pdf

Perrone, V. (1991) A letter to teachers. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

Montessori, M. (1996) From childhood to adolescence. Amsterdam: Montessori-Pierson

Publishing Company.

Montessori, M. (1984) The absorbent mind. New York, NY: Dell Publishing.

Slavin, R. (2018) Educational psychology: Theory and practice. New York, NY: Pearson.