Philosophy of Education
03/20/09
EDMT 692
Jason LaValle

    Teacher candidates the world over engage in careful study and selection of wording, all geared toward trying to hit some mythical target. Great pains are exhibited to try to compose the most poignant, impactful, and intelligent Philosophy of Education (POE) that is possible. I am sure every soon-to-be teacher who undertakes this task does so with the sole purpose and goal of writing that one POE paper that makes the education world take notice. I have learned, most of all, that writing one of these is an act in futility.
Of course careful study of attitude, approach and technique is always a good idea, that I do not deny. What makes the practice futile is the fluidity required. The instant I complete my latest of several attempts at a Philosophy of Education paper, my philosophy changes. I believe though, that this is a good thing. I believe it should change, constantly. As conditions change, careers change, and knowledge is gained a Philosophy of Education should change as well. A static Philosophy of Education is a stagnant one.
With that said, I do believe that there can be five basic tenets to follow. Practices may change and approaches may be fluid, but these five ideas serve as a foundation for my philosophy. While each one is independent, there is a definable synergy between them.
1. Flexibility/ Fluidity
It is crucial that a teacher learns to be flexible in so many ways. There is Short Term and Long Term flexibility and each are as crucial to good teaching as the other. In the Short Term, a teacher must be able to deal with the smallest interruptions of class to the monumental. First and foremost, a teacher must be able to deal with classroom interruption, be it negative, positive, or both. Lessons sometimes fail to materialize and a teacher must be quick on his/her feet to adapt and reinvent. It is easy to break down and give up but it takes talent and patience to persevere and creativity to re invent.. I believe these attributes cannot be taught and are either present in an individual or not. Also, a teacher must learn to empathize with the administration of his/her school and be as cooperative as possible. I have learned that many times, even those decisions you disagree with most, tend to have far more underlying issues that you may not be aware of. It is better for the teacher to be seen as cooperative and administration friendly, rather than the other way around. Over the many years of teaching, routines will be formed, comfort zones established that in an instant can be infringed upon with cause. It is up to the teacher to adapt and not take these changes personally and not fear getting outside of their established routines. In the Long Term, changes are a certainty. One day you may have a classroom all your own, with years of items on the walls, in your desk, and three of your coats hanging in your cabinet only to find out that space limitations dictate a mobile classroom . You must be able to find the positive in this, or you will be miserable, and it will affect the other four tenets. Another Long Term facet of this tenet is societal flexibility. You must be able to adapt to a changing culture amongst your students. You must be able to keep up with their trends and interests as well as those of your colleagues to be effective, even if those trends and interests run counter to yours. This is crucial when considering the second tenet:
2. Rapport
It is crucial and essential to build rapport with your students to be effective. Students need to feel how much you care about them. Anyone can teach something, but it takes a real connection to actually educate someone. You must take an interest in your student’s interests on a micro and macro level. You must keep up with trends, fads, and pop culture on the macro level so that you can make relevant references and analogies between the past and present for students, in order to gain understanding, and peak interest. On a micro level, it is absolutely essential that you pay close attention to each student. A breakthrough can only occur if you are attentive enough to catch the most subtle of clues that students will give you. You must always be ready for the mumbled “key to their world” that opens the student up to you because after all, is the breakthrough moment not the most glorious moment in this profession?
Establishing rapport is crucial. Following up is important. If a student ever comes to you with an issue outside of class, or one you overheard, following up builds trust. Simply asking how something turned out for the student, especially after they themselves have forgotten the “high drama for a moment,” lets the student know you care and that you consider them. A good knowledge or feel for body language also helps. You must be able to read small indicators that students will give you, and then know which to act upon. Unfortunately, I believe this also is not something that can be taught and is a skill you either posses or do not. But the most important way to establish rapport, in my opinion, is to attend their events. Make it a point to see every single student in something. Go to your student’s band performances, choir, theater, sports, 4-H, you name it, you go. Second only to the breakthrough moment in this profession is the validating moment. That look you get from a student when you lean in as they are leaving at the end of class and you compliment their task on the field, stage, or risers, naming their individual performance specifically. The look is priceless and the student knows you care. This is crucial, absolutely invaluable, and at great ease to accomplish. For fun, I like to stand at the back, stay invisible at the events for added impact the next day. That look of perplexed surprise that I was even there is quickly replaced with an approving nod, raised eyebrow, or embarrassed smile. These students are putting themselves out there , taking chances and looking for acceptance in a confusing time of their life. A sincere acknowledgement of this is the least a teacher can do, and the easiest.
3. Objectivity
Teachers, no matter the subject, must remain objective, unbiased, and have no agenda when teaching. As a Social Studies teacher, I think it is imperative to allow free thought in my classroom. I feel it is essential to present every reasonable side to every issue, whether I agree with it or not. This poses a challenge for any teacher as they must wholeheartedly learn all sides of all issues they may teach, and then some they may not (for those questions that arise outside of the formal curriculum). In the process though, the teacher will become not only more respected, but will personally benefit from greater knowledge of the world. By the end of the year, I will feel myself a failure if my students can pinpoint, with any degree of confidence, where I may stand in the political spectrum. This is crucial in order to build analytical skills in my students, as well as, create thoughtful, independent thinkers. The teacher, the leader of the classroom, the head of the group, wields so much power that there must be great pains taken to not exert that power. Too often students spend too much time trying to give the answer they think the teacher wants, as opposed to the answer they find on their own. This objective approach to teaching will permeate through the rest of the teacher’s life with positive, subtle personal reward.
4. Classroom Environs
I believe in the unorthodox classroom. I welcome a classroom that looks more like a recreation room. This is helpful in several ways from making the students feel comfortable, breaking up their day full of rows of desks, and facilitates harmony. I believe in music and the power of music to soothe and aid in focus. I believe in alternative class instruction, discussion in circles on the floor, group projects spread throughout the classroom, building, grounds. I like to get the class out of the room, change the environs, and get comfortable with the students. The classroom is no place for isolation. I believe in immersing yourself with your classmates in intellectual pursuit in a setting that breeds familiarity, rather than isolation. Students must feel safe and secure and that you are, above all, fair. I also believe students should know that knowledge and learning never stop. For that reason, I will always model learning by discussing books I have recently finished, visits to historical sites while on vacation, or programs that may have been on PBS the night before. This is how I live already, sharing it with students will serve to model lifelong learning
5. Motivation
By far the most important and incidentally, the culminating tenet that all the other tenets serve to foster. If you establish good rapport with the students by doing the things that were mentioned, they will be motivated to perform for you. If you are flexible, fair, objective, and conduct your classes in an engaging manner, students will be confident. I am a firm believer in using anything and everything to motivate a student. I believe in and take great personal interest in the use of technology in the classroom. As a Social Studies teacher I plan to pepper any lecture with numerous clips of video, computer animation, and even humor in order to keep student’s interest. I am a firm believer in Dr. Thomas Kopp’s views on Intellectual Curiosity and plan to implement a great deal of his practices into my instruction. It is key to first grab attention, then seek peaks throughout the lesson to keep attention. I believe that if a 14 year old can sit through a three hour movie about a teen wizard, they can handle 40 minutes about Athens. It is also essential that you enjoy the content for which you teach. This filters down to the students who will feed off your enthusiasm. A teacher must “model” intellectual interests for the student.
As you can see, each tenet feeds off the other in an interdependence of purpose. The unorthodox classroom builds rapport, rapport breeds trust, and if a student trusts his teacher, he is open to that teacher. An objective, fair teacher, fosters respect. From respect comes motivation. A flexible, fluid teacher is seen as a calming, secure force at a time in these students’ lives when security and stability is so greatly desired and needed. From stability comes the very foundation for which we wish to build young adults, and lifelong learners.