Education Studies Assignment: Academic Essay Dr Pauline Logue

Module: Education Studies

CA1 ASSIGNMENT: ACADEMIC ESSAY

An Exploration of My Personal Philosophy of Education and its Application to

the Technical Classroom

Student Name: Conor Gallagher

ID: G00378320

Lecturer: Dr Pauline Logue

Education Studies Assignment: Academic Essay Dr Pauline
Logue

Plagiarism Disclaimer

Student Name & ID: Conor Gallagher G00378320

Programme: Education Studies
Assignment Title: Philosophy Statement Essay
Due Date: 27/11/2022

Additional Information:
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assignment. I declare that, except where appropriately referenced, this assignment
is entirely my own work based on my personal study and/or research. I further
declare that I have not engaged the services of another to either assist in, or
complete this assignment.

CA1A (Draft) YES/ NO (Please highlight)

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Date: 27/11/2022
Education Studies Assignment: Academic Essay Dr Pauline
Logue

1. INTRODUCTION

My Name is Conor Gallagher, and I am a student teacher attending ATU studying a bachelor’s
degree In Teacher Education (Construction and DCG), This programme enables me to teach
Graphics & Wood Technology at Junior cycle and Design Communication and Graphics &
construction at Leaving cycle. My main aim throughout this essay is to outline and explore my
personal philosophy and its application to the technical classroom. This topic is extremely
important to student teachers and qualified teachers to research into and to understand their
own philosophy. This would greatly assist their own values and belief in teaching. These
Values and beliefs that a teacher displays in the classroom underpin the standards of teaching
(Council, 2016). A personal philosophy statement in education is at the forefront of every
teacher and how they educate in the classroom, a philosophy of education is not just a set of
ideas it is a way of life based on your own personal perspective that portrays your ethics and
morals, this then informs every decision you make and influences you as an educator (Johnson,
Musial, & Johnson, 2009). The topics I will be discussing are my own Values and beliefs in
both teaching and learning and educational theory and its application in the classroom.

2. VALUES AND BELIEFS IN TEACHING AND LEARNING

My personal values as a student teacher are “respect” and “joy”. These values are extremely
important to me as a teacher and ones I cannot wait to introduce into my teaching and put it
into practice. These values became relevant to me as I came up through secondary school and
having many different teachers and each one had different methods of teaching through their
own values and beliefs. Values in teaching will enhance the learning experience and contribute
to the quality of teaching and learning (Education, 2019). A school is also a place where a
child’s values get influenced so that’s why the teachers are so important (Dewey, 1987). Both
respect and joy, are very important values to have in a classroom. Mutual respect between a
teacher and a student is what is needed for the student to have a healthy education no matter
the student as “school is for all students, not just the good ones” (Curwin, Mendler, & Mendler,
2018, p. 6). Respect increases trust and builds professional relationships between the students
and teacher, give respect get respect. The teacher’s status in the classroom is all about control
and respect is at the core of keeping control, the idea of being approachable and trustworthy all
ties into the value of respect and keeping control in the classroom “respect is more sustainable
than fear” (Potts, 2021, p. 61). Joy is another key value. It can create a positive light
Education Studies Assignment: Academic Essay Dr Pauline
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environment in the classroom, doing this by creating fun and laughter in the classroom through
many methods while incorporating respect. This value influenced my learning as I came up
through my years of education and I felt it enhanced how I learned and made me respect the
teacher more giving a sense of freedom to the students. This can be done by using fun teaching
methodologies like games, quizzes, icebreakers, etc. I believe the introduction of joy into a
classroom will create pleasure in the student’s work and create a desire for learning (Morgan,
2020). Next, I will be talking about some educational theories and their application in the
classroom.

3. EDUCATIONAL THEORY & APPLICATION

I am going to be examining B.F Skinner’s Operant Conditioning and Maslow’s Hierarchy of

needs and their application. I aim to give a synopsis of each theory and its relevance to my own
teaching and its importance in the classroom, while also highlighting some critiques of the
theories.

3.1 OPERANT CONDITIONING & ITS APPLICATION

Operant conditioning is a key theory that I have chosen to discuss as I find it the most relatable
to myself and my teaching and it appears to be the most rewarding theory. Simply put in The
ABCs of Human Behavior: Behavioral Principles for the Practicing Clinician “Operant
conditioning is learning by attending to the consequences” (Ramnero & Törneke, 2008, p. 81).
Burrhus Frederick Skinner was the founder of this theory and was the person that put it into
practice and thoroughly researched it. B.F. Skinner was an American psychologist, author,
behaviourist, and social philosopher. Skinner was looking to understand how to manipulate
behaviour and the environment that controls it (Day, 2016). This was done using the skinner
box, The box held a rat or pigeon in captivity, In the box, there was a lever that let out food
when stimulated. Outside the box was a recording device that logged the record of the animal’s
responses which shows its behavioural reactions. This research-backed his theory of operant
conditioning. There are four different areas of operant conditioning they are positive
reinforcement, negative reinforcement, positive punishment, and negative punishment.

The theory of operant learning can certainly be applied in the classroom and in my own
teaching practices. It is a very good theory to be incorporated into lesson planning and lessons
(Courses, 2021). This theory applies to classroom management and creates a sense of respect
Education Studies Assignment: Academic Essay Dr Pauline
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by doing so as doing so through the continuous reinforcement of behaviour. The idea of

reinforcing the behaviour will help the teacher to have a sense of control in the class while still
maintaining respect (Gallagher, 2021).

There are some areas in Skinner’s theory of operant conditioning you can critique like that of
being able to identify the different punishments and rewards “A reinforcement which is very
effective on some people may not be effective on others and shows a reverse effect and act
poorly” (Krishnan & Amuthan, 2014), therefore being overly harsh on some punishments may
affect some students in a more negative way. It is also difficult to know how to punish or
reward repeat behaviour in some cases as it is unclear in the theory.

Now having examined Skinner’s Operant Conditioning, next I am going to explore Maslow’s
Hierarchy of needs and its application.

3.2 MASLOW’S HIERARCHY OF NEEDS & ITS APPLICATION

The first of seven children, Abraham Maslow was born to Jewish immigrants from Russia.
Maslow's parents pushed him to do well in school and supported his decision to study law. He
wed Bertha Goodman, his first cousin, and they eventually had two daughters. Maslow was a
knowledgeable and active researcher who published more than twenty books and nearly one
hundred articles (Bridgman, Cummings, & Ballard, 2019). Maslow's hierarchy of needs is a
psychological theory of motivation that includes a five-tier model of human needs that is
frequently represented as levels within a pyramid.

(Aanstoos, 2021)
Education Studies Assignment: Academic Essay Dr Pauline
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Maslow’s theory basically underlines everything that is needed before students can reach
their full potential within a class. It is what is needed to satisfy an individual’s needs. The
pyramid above shows what is needed as an adult, but this works in education as well. This
asks questions of us, are the student’s physiological needs being met in my classroom? and
how can I get the most out of my students? The individual’s self-worth in the classroom is of
vital importance and how they feel within a space. If the student’s needs are met, they will
then engage within their environment (Harris, 2007).

Maslow’s theory directly relates to the classroom through learning using motivation, The
Maslow hierarchy offers a blueprint for how to motivate students to learn. Students cannot
move up the hierarchy if the requirements for the bottom layer are not met. Once a level is
reached, it gives students the capacity and desire to learn. With the right assistance, every
student can advance within the hierarchy (Mcleod, 2007)

However, Maslow’s theory can be critiqued and could be updated to today’s standards.
Maslow’s pyramid of the Hierarchy of needs follows an order from bottom to top, and
according to Maslow, this order must be followed in order to gain the student’s full comfort
within the classroom, though this will not always be the case and it may be different
depending on the person/student (King-Hill, 2015). This theory also assumes that the needs
of all students are the same which will be false and will depend on the student’s background
race etc. (Kaur, 2013)

4. CONCLUSION

To conclude, I believe that both Skinner’s theory of operant conditioning and Maslow’s
hierarchy of needs should be at the forefront in the classroom and throughout my own teaching.
They both strongly relate to my beliefs and values of “Respect” and “Joy” within the classroom.
Skinner’s theory of operant conditioning using reinforcement will enact respect within the
classroom using behaviour management. The students will understand the rights and wrongs
of the class, and this will create a sense of mutual respect. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and his
motivational theory also link to my value of joy within the classroom. The students need to feel
comfortable in a space to get the most out of their learning and to engage within the class, this
is done by meeting the needs of the students and joy will play a big part in this. Joy will promote
the student learning in their surroundings and hopefully promote their engagement in the class.
Education Studies Assignment: Academic Essay Dr Pauline
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I believe the environment created in the classroom can either encourage or inhibit the learning
of a student.
Education Studies Assignment: Academic Essay Dr Pauline
Logue

5. LIST OF REFERENCES

Aanstoos, C. M. (2021). Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Salem Press Encyclopedia of Health.

Bridgman, T., Cummings, S., & Ballard, J. (2019). Who Built Maslow's Pyramid? A History

of the Creation of Management Studies' Most Famous Symbol and Its Implications for

Management Education.

Council, T. T. (2016). Teachingcouncil. ie. Retrieved from Code Of Professional Conduct for

Teachers: https://www.teachingcouncil.ie/en/publications/fitness-to-teach/code-of-

professional-conduct-for-teachers1.pdf

Courses, A. (2021, March 21). Skinner’s Reinforcement Theory in the Classroom.

Curwin, R. L., Mendler, A., & Mendler, B. (2018). Discipline with Dignity: How to Build

Responsibility, Relationships, and Respect in Your Classroom. Virginia: Vol. Fourth edition.

ASCD.

Day, R. K. (2016). B.F. Skinner, Ph.D. and Susan M. Markle, Ph.D.: The Beginnings.

Performance Improvement, 39-47.

Dewey, J. (1897). My Pedagogic Creed. The School Journal, LIV(3), 77-80.

Education, N. F. (2019, October 14). National Professional Development Framework:

Gallagher, C. (2021). Theory of Teaching and Learning Essay. Learning Theory (Operant

Conditioning). GMIT.

Harris, B. M. (2007). Supporting the Emotional Work of School Leaders. SAGE Publications

Ltd.
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Johnson, J., Musial, D., & Johnson, A. (2009). Introduction to Teaching: Helping Students

Learn. Lanham, Md: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. 2009.

Kaur, A. (2013). Maslow’s Need Hierarchy Theory: Applications and Criticisms. Global

Journal of Management and Business Studies, Volume 3(10).

https://doi.org/https://www.ripublication.com/gjmbs_spl/gjmbsv3n10_03.pdf

King-Hill, S. (2015). Critical analysis of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, The STeP Journal,

2(4),pp.54-57:

https://insight.cumbria.ac.uk/id/eprint/2942/1/KingHill_CriticalAnalysisOfMaslows.pdf

Krishnan, I. A., & Amuthan, K. (2014). A Review of B. F. Skinner 'Reinforcement Theory of

Motivation". International Journal of research in Education methodology.

Mcleod, S. (2007). Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. Retrieved from SimplyPsychology:

https://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html

Morgan, V. G. (2020). "Pleasure and Joy in the Work": Using Simone Weil in the Classroom.

Philosophical Investigations, 8-18.

Potts, J. (2021). The Caring Teacher: How to Make a Positive Difference in the Classroom.

John Catt Educational.

Ramnero, J., & Törneke, N. (2008). The ABCs of Human Behavior: Behavioral Principles for

the Practicing Clinician. Oakland.