AKENATEN APPIAH-MENKA UNIVERSITY OF SKILLS TRANING AND
ENTERPRENEURIAL DEVELOPMENT
MAMPONG CAMPUS
NAME
:
ALHASAAN ABDUL-SHAKUR
INDEX NUMBER:
COURSE
:
5171910168
BSC AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE
STATEMENT OFMY TEACHING PHILOSOPHY
INRODUCTION
According to Sadker and Sadker (1991), philosophy is the love of wisdom. A teaching
philosophy is the systematic and critical rationale that focuses on the important components
defining effective teaching and learning and is sensitive to contextual factors in a discipline
and or institutional context (Schonwetter et al 2002).
During my internship program, I come to realise that each student is a unique individual who
needs caring and stimulating atmosphere to grow and mature emotionally, physically and
socially. It was my sincere desire to help students meet their fullest potential by providing an
environment that is memorable, unique and invite sharing of ideas
(Petty, 2009), saw teaching as the process of attending to people’s needs, experiences, feelings
and intervening so that they learn particular things and go beyond the given.
Learning is the process of acquiring new, or modifying existing knowledge, behaviours, skills,
values or preferences (petty, 2009). Learning is not a passive process; it requires motivation,
effort and persistence. Good teachers provide an environment that is challenging yet supportive
for effective learning.
Despite the best methods and interventions, the most effective teacher in the world cannot teach
someone who is unwilling to learn.
STATEMENT OF MY TEACHING PHILOSOPHY
The classroom is made of students from different homes and cultural backgrounds,
having different interests, learning styles and abilities. As a teacher, I believe that the use of
a variety of appropriate teaching methods encourages meaningful learning. There is no
one best method for teaching, therefore a teacher can select and use any teaching method so
long as it is appropriate and relevant to the age and the maturity level of the students, and will
enable students understand the content of the subject that is being taught.
Due to the diverse nature of the interests, learning styles and needs of students in the
classroom, the use of a variety of appropriate teaching methods during lesson delivery will be
very beneficial to both the teacher and the students.
VALIDITY
According to Bloom’s Taxonomy, simple regurgitation of information is the most basic
level of learning. However, discovering each students’ individual learning style and engaging
them in the classroom with variety of teaching activities tends to elevate students from simple
memorization to understanding, applying and analysing. It posits that all teaching opportunities
should be founded on the idea of individual inquiry by students. This process makes education
a learner centred process, not one that is teacher centred. The central goal of the pedagogy is
to empower students in their education by providing dynamic learning situations and exciting
research opportunities Wallace, (2000)
The use of my philosophy was valid because,
 It made students to have high interest in the teaching and learning process.
 It helped in sustaining attention span of the students during lesson delivery.
 It enhanced an active participation of the students.
 It made the teaching of the lessons so lively and effectively
APPLICATION OF MY PHILOSOPHY
I used different teaching techniques group work, demonstrations, brainstorming and question
and answers in most of my lessons as a way of applying the belief I hold about children
learning. This makes the lessons more student centred and activity oriented. Students become
motivated and enthusiastic when I tell them I have confidence in their ability to recall facts so
I am only facilitating the process. Considering Piaget stages of intellectual development, the
average age my class is at the period of formal operational stage hence I took into account their
level of conceptual development in devising my teaching methods. I also made them take active
part in the lessons. This is because they are inherently active and so must be explored. Peer
teaching was also used as the students work together on problems as a way of marking my
lessons evolve around them.
EFFECTIVENESS OF MY TEACHING PHILOSOPHY
The serene and interactive classroom enabled the teaching and learning process
to run smoothly. Students were assessed in the following ways to determine the
effectiveness of my teaching philosophy.
 I gave classroom exercises and assignments after every lesson to enable me determine
students’ progress
 The use of various teaching strategies helped in catering for the needs of most students
in the classroom.
 I asked students questions on what they learnt after every lesson to determine the
effectiveness of my teaching philosophy.
 Tolerance and acceptance of divergent views we achieved through the group work
given and also the classroom rules reduced lawlessness and rudeness in the class. it
also created a conducive environment for teaching and learning to take place
successful.
 Distractions were eliminated from my class. Every student participated during my
lessons without fear intimidation.
CONCLUSION
In summary, I believe that students can properly utilize the knowledge they acquire only when
they truly understand what they are taught. In order for this to be achieved, teachers need to
employ a variety of appropriate teaching methods in order to address different learning needs
of the students.
REFERENCES
Bloom, J. (1956). The taxonomy of educational objectives. New York: Macmillan
publisher.
Petty, G. (2009). Teaching today. A practical guide. Cheltenham: Nelson Thornes.
Myra Sadker, D. S. (1991). The Issues of Gender in Elementary and secondary
Education.
Review
of
Research
in
Education,
pp.
269-334.
Retrieved
from
http//www.jstor.org/stable/1
Schonwetter, D.J.L., Sokal, M. Friensen, T. and Taylor, K.L. (2002). Teaching
philosophy reconsidered: a conceptual model for the development and evaluation of
teaching philosophy statements. The international journal for academic development.