Eva Vincent

Inclusive Philosophy Statement

3/27/21

I went into the field of teaching because I felt a great desire to help others succeed,

reach their goals and be a support for others. This passion of mine drew me into this profession

and will help me to be mindful of others, but I will need to work to ensure that this does not

just apply to a certain group of students, but each student I come in contact with and their

families regardless of if they are in my classroom or not. I as an educator will need to be

extremely mindful of students needs and abilities so that I can be accommodating and inclusive

so that student feel welcome in the classroom and it is known that everyone is an important

contributing member to our classroom community.

For starters, the very least that I can do is make sure that the physical layout of my

classroom is accessible and is configured in a way that makes it easy for any individual to get

around easily. Individuals who use wheelchairs, individuals using crutches, or a scooter all are

people that I will need to be mindful of so that they do not have to be greeted with a challenge

while moving around my classroom. Along with a classroom layout that is well thought out and

mindful of all people, I will need to have designated spaces set up for individuals who may need

alone time or breaks throughout the day. I plan to have a space called “Going to Australia”

where a student who may have sensory issues can go to for a quick escape at any moment if

things are getting too overwhelming for them. By providing this designated space for my

students then they can feel respected by me knowing that they have the freedom to do what is

best for them at any moment.

 I also plan to teach my students to be mindful and inclusive members of society so that

they can be kind, compassionate and patient classmates to one another. I plan to accomplish

this by modeling appropriate behavior to my students and by talking with my students about

what this would look like in our classroom while they are interacting with one another. I plan to

read books with my students where the main character in the story has a disability, needs extra

help or may look different from others so that students can realize that we are all more alike

than we are different and it is important to include and welcome everyone. Some books that

would be great starting points to use in the classroom are El Deafo, Rescue and Jessica: A Life

Changing Friendship and Wonder. By reading books with diverse characters, students will

develop an understanding and combat initial fear or hesitation that students may feel when

they meet someone who is different from them for the first time.

All throughout my primary schooling career there were always opportunities for

students to interact with students who were in special needs classes. A few of my classmates

even did half of the day in special education and the other half with us in the traditional

classroom. When I was a senior in high school, I was a peer tutor for the special Olympics class

where I was a partner with one of the athletes. These experiences were so great as it really

allowed our school community to be inclusive and break down walls that might occur between

traditional classroom students and special education students. It is so important to be mindful

of all students so that a cohesive school environment can flourish and welcome everyone. I am

grateful that my school district did such a good job at this and I hope that I can work in a district

that holds these values and that I can implement this into my future classroom so that my
students can have a similar or even better experience than what I was provided which allowed

myself and peers to combat stereotypes and be more inclusive of all people in our community.