Philosophy of Education

By Aremi Sanchez

Why I Teach

My journey to becoming an educator began with a self-developed love of learning. Teaching, however, became a conscious choice I made later in life. Inspired by Neil Postman when he wrote, “Children are the living messages we will send forth to a time we will never see.” (Postman, 1994), gave me a sense of longing to be part of something bigger than myself and that it would sustain long after I am gone. My interest in teaching was heightened when I became aware that life is a process of learning and teaching. I realized the importance of developing one’s passion and nurturing our innate talents. We all need someone on our corner regardless of where we come from or where we are headed. I want to be that person standing on a child’s corner regardless if I stand alone or among many in support. I committed to giving to young children what I and many others like me were not provided, and I found my purpose.

My Beliefs on Education

My educational belief is to be a support system for children and help in the development of the whole child. A child's academic success is reliant on the Educators ability to cultivate a trusting relationship and provide a learning environment that promotes positive experiential learning. Jean Piaget taught us about Schema as it pertains to a child's cognitive learning. I feel that as an educator of young children in primary years, it is invaluable to provide experiences that help children develop cognitive constructs as the child acquires new information. A young child needs to be introduced to the world around them in a manner that makes the child feel secure and have a sense of belonging. Young children can only feel safe with adults that they have developed an attachment to, thus making it a priority in any learning environment. Educators, as well as caretakers of young children, have the awesome responsibility of introducing their charges to trusting and caring relationships. Once bonds have been made, the children are more willing learners. Bob Sullo (2013) 1 2 3 Teaching Philosophy wrote, "The stronger the emotion, the stronger the memory pathway that is created in the brain. Therefore, anyone who strips education of emotion inhibits learning.” (p. 48). A young child will struggle to learn from its Educators if they have not first formed a trusting relationship. There is much to learn from the Social and Political History of Early Childhood Education. We need to understand the journey of Early Childhood Education to know what work is yet to be done. Thanks to the research, accomplishments, and tested theories of Early Childhood Education, we have gained a wealth of knowledge that affords us the awareness to first establish bonds and nurture relationships with young children. It is only through relationships that we, as a society, can impact future generations.

Inspired Practices

To explain how I teach, I have first to introduce who I teach. I work with the youngest of learners, from birth to age five, in a family childcare setting. My goal is to establish a culture of relationship and healthy attachment. As an educator and caregiver, I acknowledge the responsibility I hold to bring values, knowledge, skills, motivation, and inspiration to the lives of young learners while under my charge. It is essential to recognize that as an educator, I have an undeniable influence on how the children will learn, as well as what they will learn. We must meet the primary needs of young children to create a positive learning culture. I utilize the classroom, outdoor play spaces, and adult-child dialog as a primary source of learning experiences along with planned provocations to insight thought, problem-solving, and creativity. Developmental assessments of the children based on their age and ability will ultimately guide my lesson plans. Although academic learning is not developmentally appropriate for this age group, it is essential to introduce children to real-life experiences and ways in which we utilize language, literacy, mathematics, science, and arts. To do this, children first need to experience self-discovery, self-regulation, problem-solving, interactions, and play. Bev Bos said, "If it hasn't been in the hands and the body, it can't be in the brain." (Allen, 2013, expression 1) Young children learn with their whole body; therefore, their learning environment must be a place that allows all their senses to be utilized.

Intentional Teacher

Much examination is needed in the exploration of intentional teaching. Intentional teachers use their knowledge, judgment, and expertise to organize learning experiences for children. (Epstein, 2014, p. 1). Is it acceptable to believe that once in the classroom and in the presence of young learners all we have read and understood about being intentional and effective will align with our practice and execution of teaching? I think it takes more than a belief, to be an intentional teacher. Intentionality requires an objective, a plan of execution, or an act of being deliberate. We should aim to be deliberate in how we teach and how we connect with children in our classroom in conjunction with academic domains. Intentional teaching aligns with the foundation of my teaching philosophy as I foster relationships and attachment with children, I am better informed of the needs of the child I am working with. Observing and understanding the emotional health of children is essential to how we form those bonds. As teachers and caregivers, we must be attuned and receptive to the emotional and psychological needs of the children we are charged with, without it we will be ineffective in our approach no matter how good a lesson is structured and how much-differentiated instruction has been applied.

My position as an intentional teacher is to first provide a safe, stable, and secure atmosphere in the classroom that offers children the space to be who they are. Second, my role is to model healthy ways of building associations and establishing a trusting exchange of emotions that allow for positive attachments to occur between myself and the children. Once trust and bonding have been established then I can begin to be effective in intentional academic instruction by creating an environment that supports child-centered and adult-guided experiences.

Exploring what encompasses Intentional teaching and the positive effects of it have provided me with the tools to focus my practice on what I value most in teaching children. I value the quality of the relationships I build, and the feelings children have toward me as a teacher and care provider. It is more important to me how I make them feel about themselves and that I can help foster a sense of self-confidence and an awareness of how valuable they are to our society. Acknowledging the differences in each child and supporting their learning through a process of identification of individual learning styles I can adapt the content of a lesson or activity to the learning modalities of each learner.

References

Allen, L. (2013). “Bev Bos”. Retrieved from Inachildspath.com/activities-for-kids/bev-bos/.

Epstein, A. S. (2014). Introducing Intentional Teaching. In S. Reid (Ed.), The Intentional Teacher Choosing the Best Strategies for Young Children’s Learning (Revised Edition. p. 1). Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children.

Postman, N. (1994). The Disappearance of Childhood. :.

Sullo, R. A. (2013). The Inspiring Teacher: Making a Positive Difference in Students’. : .ng Soon

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