Teaching Philosophy
Please find a summary of my philosophy of teaching and learning below. A more in depth version of this philosophy can be found here.
As a secondary science teacher, my philosophy of teaching and learning has its roots in a collaborative inquiry-based approach where students work together with their peers and their teacher to construct their own knowledge. Inquiry-based learning encourages students to ask their own questions and explore the answers as they see fit. It can encompass varying degrees of teacher and student involvement as appropriate to the learning context. While some would argue that an inquiry-based approach to teaching and learning wastes valuable instructional time, educational research points to the long-term effectiveness of this approach which promotes higher order thinking and encourages students to become lifelong learners. Of particular importance to the success of inquiry or discovery-based learning are pre-established relationships of trust between the teacher and the students. This means that as the teacher, I must look beyond my students as learners and become familiar with their strengths and weaknesses, interests and hobbies both inside and outside of the classroom in order to prepare lessons that they will find meaningful, engaging, and appropriate for their learning abilities.
A second aspect that determines the success of the inquiry-based approach is student motivation. My own experience as a secondary science teacher has taught me that it is nearly impossible to teach students who are not motivated to learn. Student motivation is therefore a crucial aspect of my teaching and learning philosophy as it dictates the potential success or failure of my instructional practices. As a secondary science teacher, I expect my students to demonstrate both self-efficacy and self-agency, meaning that they must have confidence in their abilities to learn, and be willing to act on that confidence. I recognize, however, that I too must contribute to their motivation. Part of this motivation will come from planning and preparing lessons that incorporate students’ interests, promote choice, and are situated within a real-life context. Another part of it, however, must come from the use of rewards and punishments. In other words, I must have some way of rewarding those students who are well behaved, and complete their assignments in a timely manner. Likewise, I must put in place some form of “consequence” for those students who do not meet these criteria.
To summarize, I believe that an inquiry-based, hands-on approach to both teaching and learning will be most effective in facilitating students’ understanding of science. The success of this approach requires the establishment of positive relationships of trust between the teacher and the students who perform complementary roles in the process of knowledge construction, as well as both internally and externally generated student motivation.
As a secondary science teacher, my philosophy of teaching and learning has its roots in a collaborative inquiry-based approach where students work together with their peers and their teacher to construct their own knowledge. Inquiry-based learning encourages students to ask their own questions and explore the answers as they see fit. It can encompass varying degrees of teacher and student involvement as appropriate to the learning context. While some would argue that an inquiry-based approach to teaching and learning wastes valuable instructional time, educational research points to the long-term effectiveness of this approach which promotes higher order thinking and encourages students to become lifelong learners. Of particular importance to the success of inquiry or discovery-based learning are pre-established relationships of trust between the teacher and the students. This means that as the teacher, I must look beyond my students as learners and become familiar with their strengths and weaknesses, interests and hobbies both inside and outside of the classroom in order to prepare lessons that they will find meaningful, engaging, and appropriate for their learning abilities.
A second aspect that determines the success of the inquiry-based approach is student motivation. My own experience as a secondary science teacher has taught me that it is nearly impossible to teach students who are not motivated to learn. Student motivation is therefore a crucial aspect of my teaching and learning philosophy as it dictates the potential success or failure of my instructional practices. As a secondary science teacher, I expect my students to demonstrate both self-efficacy and self-agency, meaning that they must have confidence in their abilities to learn, and be willing to act on that confidence. I recognize, however, that I too must contribute to their motivation. Part of this motivation will come from planning and preparing lessons that incorporate students’ interests, promote choice, and are situated within a real-life context. Another part of it, however, must come from the use of rewards and punishments. In other words, I must have some way of rewarding those students who are well behaved, and complete their assignments in a timely manner. Likewise, I must put in place some form of “consequence” for those students who do not meet these criteria.
To summarize, I believe that an inquiry-based, hands-on approach to both teaching and learning will be most effective in facilitating students’ understanding of science. The success of this approach requires the establishment of positive relationships of trust between the teacher and the students who perform complementary roles in the process of knowledge construction, as well as both internally and externally generated student motivation.