Philosophy of Education
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From the times I have
spent in the classroom, as a student, a volunteer, and just as an observer, I
have taken in ideas from many different vantage points and I feel that I can
effectively combine them all into something that can be beneficial, helpful,
educational, and enjoyable for students of the future. I feel that this is
something that has shaped what I see to be my philosophy of education.
First
off I would want my classroom to be a community of learners and a place where
everyone is equal and can enjoy themselves.
I feel that a job each and every educator has is to provide fun
activities that provide for meaningful and important experiences for each
student. One aspect of a classroom community that I had the opportunity to read
about was in William H. Heward’s Exceptional
Children: An Introduction to Special Education. Mentioned in the text is
the concept of a student oriented classroom and immediately after reading about
it I fell in love with the idea, I actually went as far as circling it about
ten times and writing in the margins that this was something I knew I wanted to
have in my classroom.
A
consultant colleague says he never knows what he’ll see next in my classroom.
He mentions the “campsite,” a tent one student uses as a quiet retreat from the
busy classroom; the “vending machine,” where students can buy a treat with
classroom money they have earned, the claw-foot “bathtub” where students can
relax and read or complete independent work; and the “Barnes and Noble area,” a
student-created nook where they can sit in soft chairs with a drink and read
and/or listen to books on tape, CDs, or vintage Elvis records (Heward 131).
Every time I read this description I can visualize
this classroom and can almost see how I would want mine to be a chimera of
this. I love the idea of having student orientated areas that can be used for
recreation or educational purposes in a fun, entertaining, and less stressful
manner. At times many students with learning disabilities, and general
education students for that matter, need a bit of down time to catch their
breaths and orient themselves back into the direction they should be headed. I
feel that this set up allows for students to go off onto their own but still be
in the loop of the classroom and still being a part of the overall community,
something that I feel is essential to having a productive and prolific year.
An overall classroom
community should be created in the fist three weeks of the school year. During
this time the teacher should explain the classroom rules and etiquette,
demonstrate procedures and behaviors, and model ways of interacting within the
classroom as a whole. Teachers should set expectations for students to follow
and then model throughout the classroom over the course of the entire year.
Although many students with learning disabilities and mental retardation have
poor short term memory they often have good long term memory after they have
been taught a skill. By proving modeling throughout the year it further
enforces the point. Student leaders are another way to increase student’s
involvement and student cooperation. Teachers should develop predictable
classrooms that run on some sort of routine so that children feel comfortable
and safe within the room which allows them to feel free to take more risks.
To
further provide for a classroom that is enjoyable for student’s, projects and
classroom involvement should be encouraged. Cooking experiences, learning a
song and caroling to other classes, promoting school wide awareness on a topic,
and volunteering and working in the community are good social justice practices
that can become deep learning experiences for students in a special education
classroom. These projects provide for ties and connections to be made with
other students, faculty/staff, and the overall community that these students
will one day have to transition into. I feel that students that are in special
education should interact regularly with the community and people of the school
to provide them with opportunity necessary to make the needed social connection
they often do not make. This helps them to get to know other people and lets
the other people get to know them. I also am a firm believer in allowing for
movement in the classroom as much as possible. Whenever a student can get up or
move around to perform a task encourage and allow that. This helps to keep
students minds working and focused rather than letting them drift off. In
addition, I like the idea of using a soft ball or a Koosh in a classroom
environment to call on students. This not only makes students aware of the
topic and conversation that is taking place, they have to be always ready and
on their toes in case the ball comes their way. This also allows for extra
hand-eye coordination that many students are lacking.
As
far as teaching strategies for content area in a classroom I have seen some
strategies that I like and feel are worth implementing into a classroom of my
own. Fist is to focus on essentials, by identifying the important principles,
key concepts, and big ideas of the curriculum that apply to the content as a
whole. A good tool to use is graphic organizers, which helps students that
learn visually, since the important information is organized and laid out in a
graphic way. I also feel that it is important to explain and visually show
students connections between information they have learned and what they are
learning now. Flow charts, diagrams, and graphic organizers can be utilized to
expound on the connection. Another strategy is to provide support or scaffolding
to students while they are learning a new skill or knowledge, and then
gradually reduce the level of support that is given to students, based on
individual knowledge and understanding, as they move towards independence. Some other effective teaching strategies that
can be used across the board are wait time and extended wait time. This gives
students each enough time to process information as it is presented to them and
get better prepared to answer the question if they happen to be the student
that the teacher calls upon. Wait time and extended wait time can be from only
3 to 15 seconds but that amount of time allows students to process the
statement or question that was proposed to them and then to think of a way top
answer it. Another strategy is using bell ringers. I feel that these quick and
easy activities can help to direct students to the information that is going to
be discussed and it also allows them to refresh their minds on previously
learned information. Bell ringers help students and teachers assess progress
that is being made with presented material and topics.
On
the topic of inclusion I have mixed feelings. I feel that at times it can be
something beneficial and essential to students’ developing skills that are on
target with other students in their grade level, but then at other times I just
see inclusion as something that is not helping and is basically hindering
progress some students could make if they were in a classroom with other
students with the same disability. Inclusion can be a great and wondrous
experience for all that are involved, but it is not the cure to all problems
and cannot be used as a Band-Aid in all situations. I feel that each child is
an individual and should be evaluated as such. Student’s backgrounds and previous
educational placements should be viewed, by parents, teachers, and other
knowledgeable professionals to find which environment poses the least
restrictive and most helpful/beneficial environment to that student in
particular. Students with certain learning disabilities should be allowed to
participate in inclusion classrooms where others would make more progress and
stride in a classroom that is solely a special education setting. I feel that
at times inclusion is seen as this holy educational placement that can sure and
solve all the problems that the educational system is facing when that is
sorely not the case. It is just one option amongst a see of many others, and I
feel that others need to be considered just as seriously because student’s
future and potential livelihood could be drastically changed for the worst.
For
me education and the philosophy I have stem form the students and what works
best for them. Some things work for some while others work for others. The most
important thing is to try to the fullest potential to meet each and everyone’s
individual needs. To give them the best possible educational experience. To
give them confidence and self-esteem. And to provide them with a care,
guidance, and any other nurturing aspect they require to become the best person
they can be in the time they have given you.
References
Heward, W. (2008) Exceptional children: An introducation to special education. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall
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Sarah Baker
Email: sbake001@mail.plattsburgh.edu
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