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Philosophy of Education

In education, there is a lot you need to know about the different philosophies and how

they can and will be used in an educational classroom as well as some teaching strategies to

ensure the students are gaining the appropriate amount of knowledge and education. Some

philosophies of education are idealism, realism, pragmatism, and existentialism. These are all

divided into three different groups such as teacher-centered, student-centered, and society that

refers to goals and how they are measured. Within some philosophies are some great theorist

who study certain behaviors and theories such as Erikson’s psychosocial theory of human

development, Maslow’s self-actualization theory, Piaget’s cognitive development theory,

Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory, Brofenbrenner’s ecological systems, B.F. Skinner’s theory of

behaviorism, and Albert Bandurna’s social cognitive theory. As I reflect on my own beliefs and

understanding of the importance and purpose of a child’s education especially in their early

years of learning, I see my personal philosophy being based on four specific fundamental

concepts. The fundamental concepts are the role of the student, the role of the teacher, the

purpose of education, and how a teacher can be integrated in the community. The purpose of

education is to prepare students for their upcoming future and allow them to acquire new skills

and knowledge that will help them later on in their life. In student's schooling from elementary to

college, teachers are there to apply knowledge and figure out what we want to do later on.

Students learn basic life skills so that you have an idea of what you want to do. The advantage

of getting early education is that you are able to get some kind of job and do something you love

doing and find something that sparks your interests. A teacher’s rule is to provide good and

intelligent knowledge to students to make sure each student has a possibility of success and a

better future.You can reassure students they can do it and not to give up, find and use good

teaching methods that will best benefit the students in their learning and teachers must get to

know each of the students to ensure student feel included, and their strengths or weaknesses.
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My favorite theorist is B. F. Skinner who studies behaviorism and believes in praise, rewards,

and positive reinforcement. I agree with his study of behaviorism and throughout my past couple

years of experience in different classrooms, I have found that when you give a child praise for

their assessments it encourages the student. Anyone that comes into my future classroom can

expect to see a well-structured, safe, welcoming classroom with hard working and engaged

students. You would notice I have rules listed on the wall, giving my students and instruction by

showing by example and using the I do, We do, You do activities as I have found that very

helpful and essential in a students learning. The role of the students in education is Jean

Piaget’s theories of constitutionalism and schema are useful to the students and they already

know and apply it to the new knowledge being taught and learn from activities to be self

sufficient. The students have control in the classroom. Students will have a jar of beads and

everytime they do well, they may earn or lose stones. When the jar is full, they get to choose

from a few different fun activities. Teachers' role in the community is to be role models, show

good choices, and be willing to help. This encourages them to look up to you and not be scared

to ask for help. As a community, I plan to help students be a good influence for others to look up

to help out if they need a substitute. In my own classroom of students, I plan on using a variety

of different teaching philosophies and strategies such as keeping a safe learning environment,

giving feedback to the students, exploring and embracing the students creativity and

individuality, equal opportunities, and lots of time for expression and questions that the students

may have. I feel that students learn best when they are face to face and have lots of

opportunities to be hands-on and engaged in their learning with activities, projects, visuals,

anything that the students may find fun to do while learning the content. I feel that it is also

important that for students to learn best the teacher needs to get to know each of their students

and how each student learns best in their own way so that each student is given the same

opportunities and assignments that fit for them. When it comes to assessment and data

collection, I think it is best that as a teacher, I provide the students with check-ins on their
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progress, how they’re feeling, and what they might need to focus more on or need additional

help with. For my assessments, I would rather give my students a wrap up project or

assignment that is hands-on that both shows me their progress and where they might need

additional assistance and help as well as relieves the students from so much stress and anxiety

that they may have when they hear tests or assessments. Students often freak out and get

anxious when it comes to showing what they learned in a test and tend to do worse than other

forms of assessment that are fun and not all written on paper. In my future classroom, I will be

using a lot of projects or activities as assessments for the students, using tickets out the door to

show if they learned and understood the content for that day and helps me see their progress,

more hands-on activities that allows the students to be on their own with peers and have fun

while learning the content. Some of the theorists I really enjoyed and plan on using in my

classroom were the theories on behaviorism, and cognitive development. I found that these two

theories really connect a lot with teaching students when it comes to learning and developing

their minds and education to build more knowledge to help students reach their full potential and

get a good education. Another strategy I will use in my classroom is the three tiers such as core

classroom instruction, targeted small group instruction, and intensive individual intervention and

nature vs. nurture that has to do with the genetic contributions to human development, and the

environmental factors and experiences. By using these specific teaching methods and

strategies, the students should feel more at peace with less anxiety and stress, want to go to

school to learn, have fun, and have a better understanding of the material that they are learning

that fits them the best. In conclusion, I can reflect on my own beliefs and understanding of a

child’s educational experience and methods. Teachers are given the opportunity to help

students and accomplish their goals by committing their time to be with students that need a

proper education just like I had to grow and succeed. My goal in life is to ensure all children are

treated the same, are safe, and encouraged.

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APA References

Vanhefter, L. (2024, March 20) Adapting for Individual Differences Chapter 5 [Powerpoint

Presentation]. https://ehacc.hacc.edu/d2l/le/content/313847/viewContent/8531101/View

Vanhefter, L. (2024, March 20) Applying What We Know About Children’s Learning &

Development Chapter 4 [Powerpoint Presentation].

https://ehacc.hacc.edu/d2l/le/content/313847/viewContent/8531100/View