Teaching Philosophy
Almost everyone can remember a teacher they had who was so passionate and inspirational that they drastically impacted their life. The opportunity to greatly influence someone's life for the better is the reason I love teaching. I aspire to be that teacher that gives students the self confidence and push they need to reach their full potential. I believe a teacher should be a mentor and role model who is nurturing and empathetic to the students needs. A main goal for me as a teacher is to have authentic human connections. It is necessary to be able to foster the development and personal growth of both students and teachers. Not only are the students learning and growing as individuals but the teacher is growing as well. Teaching varies greatly depending on the subject being taught. Environmental education is a subject close to my heart and one that can not be undervalued. I was so inspired by my Environmental Science teacher during my senior year of high school that I decided to get my degree in Environmental Studies. Being environmentally literate is vital to being a good member of our global society. Environmental studies touches every aspect of life and can be a very rewarding and enlightening subject. Making learning relevant and personal greatly impacts the students ability to grasp the concept. Through outdoor and interactive field trips, environmental education comes to life. A technique that I often employ while teaching is the art of questioning. Continuously asking students questions that challenge them, encourages their curiosity and allows them the satisfaction of coming to an answer on their own. When teachers do not simply hand students answers, students are able to think for themselves. Another technique that I have found effective is storytelling. Storytelling with enthusiasm grasps students’ attention and makes concepts more relatable and tangible. Something I also always try to keep in mind is to really listen to what students have to say. Giving them my undivided attention is necessary to understanding their individual needs and fostering their self- confidence. Teaching is full of great “ah ha” moments that bring great satisfaction to both teacher and student. A pivotal moment I remember was on one of the field trip hikes. A student was grabbing at a plant when another student came over and told them to be gentle because “it's a living thing and you are living too.” Hearing that comment really touched my heart and represents the real connection with nature that we help build. One important thing that I have learned through my experiences is that attitudes are contagious. Bringing a positive, energetic and enthusiastic attitude to teaching is hugely beneficial. Being a teacher is a huge responsibility which often comes with great experiences and joy. Teacher Reflection Through my experiences as a member of the Restoring Connections team of the Environmental Leadership Program I have learned what it takes to be an impactful, successful teacher. It has been very enlightening to receive direct feedback from my team members, mentors, and indirectly from my students. It has been important for my development as a teacher to have the ability to assess what I am doing that works, and what I need to work on. A huge part of being a successful teacher is creating a curriculum that is effective. It did not come easy to create lessons with a clear and conscious flow. Framing was probably the most important thing I learned throughout this program and am still working on everyday. In order for the students to really grasp the concepts we were presenting, we needed to frame it in a way that emphasized its overall importance. The more meta understanding of why we were taking students on nature walks through local habitats was something I needed to learn along the way, and incorporate into every lesson I taught. For example, some main things we focus on during our field trips are teaching native flora and fauna, but the reason we introduce them to the students is not so they can simply ramble off names of plants but so they can create a connection with their local environment. Making the curriculum more holistic through framing was the most important lesson I learned throughout ELP. Another major lesson I have learned is effective group management. In the beginning I had a difficult time ‘holding the space’ and keeping students engaged, especially when the group was particularly rowdy or there were students who needed extra attention. I found it difficult to gain the students respect as a mentor, in part by my tendency to be less stern and more lenient. I really had to work on balancing being a friend and being an authority figure. A way I try to be a successful teacher and mentor is by using positive reinforcement. Good behavior was encouraged when praising students who are behaving well and ignoring those who are not. This helped create a great group atmosphere. Something that I employed when trying to grasp the students attention were attention getting techniques. I would ask the teacher what they used in their everyday classroom and used them throughout the trip. This proved very effective when redirecting the students attention. Understanding how to speak to different age ranges was also something I had to get used to over the weeks. I was unsure, at first, their different developmental stages so I tended to speak in a more juvenile manner. After receiving feedback and working on creating rapport with the students more I felt I have improved in really connecting with the students. Energy is contagious so it was my duty to keep my enthusiasm and excitement apparent to the students. I tried my hardest to show my passion through teaching and I have seen it pay off with the students engagement. I have been able to work with different age groups and people of different backgrounds which enabled me to be adaptable and diverse in my teaching. Student/Teacher Evaluations: As a student learning how to be an impactful teacher it is very beneficial to get feedback from teachers themselves. Every teacher is different and use unique methods for group management and for getting information across to their students. I made sure to ask each teacher about the attention getting technique that was most effective with their students so I was confident I could keep my students engaged. I also received helpful information from the teachers on how to care for unique students. For example, there was a student in one of my groups who was deaf and had a walking disability that I accommodated to by having more physical, tactile learning. I had the students feeling tree textures and looking closely at flowers so that the focus was not fully on audible learning. Being adaptable to the different classroom atmospheres was something that was very important while leading a lesson. Community Partner Evaluations: Jenny Laxton was the main contributor to our project from Mount Pisgah Arboretum. Because she has led several of these field trips before and worked with many other restoring connections teams her feedback was extremely useful. The curriculum we created was especially made to cater to her desires and the geography of the arboretum. Though we received very important feedback from her on our curriculum, the most influential critique was on making our lessons more holistic and cohesive. We needed to remember why we were doing this program in the first place and really get across to the students the importance of learning about their local environment. We also needed to make our curriculum transferable and easy enough for future volunteers to lead field trips effectively. These pieces of feedback were used throughout our creation and revisions of our curriculum as well as during our field trips. Our other community partners, Adams Elementary also provided us with important feedback. Again, we needed our curriculum to be adaptable for future years. ELP Evaluations: The most impactful feedback and constructive criticism was given to me by my peers, my project manager, Aimee, and my project director, Katie. These members were present during every team meeting, classroom visit, and field trip which made their evaluations of my work that much more applicable and valuable. I learned how to effectively apply the constructive criticism and become more comfortable and appreciative of hearing such criticism. Such critiques included writing larger so everyone can see it or calling on students who were less inclined to participate instead of the students who always rose their hands. I learned to be more assertive and structured during my field trips. I also learned a valuable amount from evaluating my peers myself. Watching what they did differently and what worked well was very inspiring. It also taught me what not to do. This exposure to constant self reflection was extremely valuable not only to my career as a student but as a person. |