My Credo
Tyler Powell
4/15/10
Intro to Teaching
Prof. Eastman
Abstract
Since my fifth grade year of elementary school I have always wanted to be a
physical education teacher. My teaching philosophy is influence a great deal by
existentialism and progressivism. As an existentialist, I plan to give my students the
freedom to learn the way they want. I plan to implement a lot of group work and class
discussion so my students can express their own ideas.
Having a progressivism side to me as well I believe education should be directed
to the students rather than the subject being taught. I plan to serve as a guide for the
student, helping them follow the path to their goals. Implementing student and teacher
interaction gives each student the opportunity to interact with me individually rather than
treating the class as a whole. I understand each student learns differently and have the
interaction helps each individual to learn their own way. Watching my students become
successful and reach their goals is the reason I have such a strong passion for teaching.
Since the first day of gym class my fifth grade year of elementary school I knew I
wanted to be a physical education teacher. My fifth grade physical education teacher had
a great deal of influence on my decision to become a teacher. She had a way of turning
anyone’s bad day into a great day and had a great deal of positive influence on several
students’ lives, including mine. Being around someone like this made me realize I want
to mimic what Mrs. Lowe did to my life. I believe young adults need someone to look up
to, especially if they are not close with their parents and I would love to be that person.
The teaching philosophy I have the most passion for is existentialism, although I
am also influenced by progressivism. I believe the student should have the choice of what
they get out of a class and what they feel is important to them, rather than having them
tied down and forcing them to obtain information that they are not interested in learning.
I also think education should be directed toward the student rather than the subject. I
believe if a student wants to learn, he or she will learn. Forcing them to learn will do
nothing but make situations worse for students in my opinion. The interaction between a
teacher and a student has a dramatic effect on a student’s learning process. I believe
education theories with interaction have a huge advantage over theories with very little
interaction with students. Interaction between the teacher and students makes it much
easier to determine the students’ specific needs for learning.
I feel that student expectations should be set at the very beginning of the school
year. I believe letting the students know what you expect from them at the beginning will
make the class operate much smoother and more successful, rather than keeping the
students guessing. Also, having the students set personal goals they wish to achieve in the
class is a great way for students to have the extra ambition to be successful and
accomplish their dreams. As a teacher, I believe you have the responsibility to keep
students on track to achieve these goals. Personally, teachers have always been the
biggest influence in my life because I was never very close with my family, which is
something I would like to provide for young adults as teachers in my past did for me.
Open thinking in the classroom is something I encourage students to get involved
in when I teach. I believe students should have their own opinions and be able to express
what they feel about a certain topic even if they disagree with other students or even the
teacher. Speaking up in class will get young adults prepared for the real world when they
become an adult. There are not enough adult citizens today that make their voice known
to better our society. Encouraging young adults to speak up for them selves and express
their opinion in a mannerly way, should improve our society in the near future.
Students being able to think on their own and make their own decisions are my
ideas of the learning process. My belief in existentialism leads me to the idea that
students learn from experience. I believe working with others is a very important factor in
a young adult’s education. In my opinion, the exchange of experience and knowledge
between students gives them a better opportunity to learn because they learn more by
sharing ideas, as well as listening to others ideas. I also believe students should have the
opportunity to engage and implement new ideas to the lesson plan.
In my classroom I plan to encourage my students to be independent thinkers and
have their own opinions rather than settling with fellow classmate’s thoughts. As an
existentialist, it is my belief that it is important for students to decide what is most
important to them. Deciding this has an influence on how much knowledge an individual
gains from a lesson. Being creative, thinking independently, and sharing ideas are the
characteristic I will encourage in my classroom. I believe having these characteristic will
help students find themselves as an individual and develop a better learning environment
with class discussion.
My passion for progressivism influences me to believe that education should be
directed toward the students rather than the subject matter. By directing education toward
students, each student will choose his or her own direction of learning. Each student
learns differently so forcing he or she to learn the same way by directing education
toward the subject rather than the student does not give he or she the opportunity to learn
how he or she chooses.
Giving my students the freedom of how they perceive and learn new material is
what I plan to emphasize. I plan to serve each student as a guide down the path of
success. Giving students the freedom to choose how they learn and express themselves as
an individual gives them the opportunity to make their own educational choices, which I
believe is the most successful way to learn. Serving as my student’s guide, I make every
effort to serve each individual and encourage educational growth.
As I guide each student with my existentialism and progressivism beliefs, I plan
to provide each of my students with an equal opportunity to reach their goals. I am aware
every student learns differently and that is why I believe using existentialism and
progressivism is the best way to teach. The students know what their dreams are and my
job is to help them reach those dreams by being their tour guide to success. Seeing my
students reach their goals is what I strive for and is also why I have such a strong passion
for teaching.