Aubrey Holzinger Teaching Philosophy 3.12.

2014 Teaching is the art of inspiring the learner to engage, edifying their self-concept and selfregulatory behaviors, and sharing a passion for life-long learning. Teaching is inspiring. Teaching is relational. Teaching is an infectious lifestyle. Teaching brings joy to the learner and the professional. Teaching is informed by the learner and in return informs the student. The above quote was written in the early years of my teacher preparation. Over the years it has come to be a grounding liturgy to return to when the web of issues, politics and opinions on education overwhelm me. Reading over these words reminds me of who I am as a teacher and that is, ironically, more than a teacher. I view my teaching identity to be one lens through which I project myself outward into my world to affect change. As a teacher I am constantly morphing to match the needs and learning abilities of my students. I look to be informed by my students so that I can best inform them. In this sense I most enjoy teaching with a constructivist mindset, allowing the knowledge of the class to inspire the learning of the class. I believe the greatest growth I can be a part of in a students

educational career is the transformation into an independent learner able to discover and investigate knowledge in their own world. With this goal in mind, I approach lesson content learning targets with an underwritten goal to inspire students to snatch the knowledge from my hands and run with it. In keeping the individual, not just the student, as the focus of my profession, I am deeply passionate about respecting my students as learners learning to learn. Let me unpack this idea. Adolescents are mandated to be students, mandated to sit in my classroom with the expectation that they are on task, receiving context, each minute of the day. When I see my students as more than students, I respect that they are individuals still learning how to integrate learning into their

life, still discovering what learning looks like in their pursuit of a flourishing life. Along with this view, I see my students as individuals who have obstacles outside the classroom walls which affect their ability to be a learner. My love for students with emotional impairments is found in this intersection where life directly affects their ability to learn. Classroom management under these ideals offers the learner a share in their learning style, pace and time management. I believe it is my duty as a teacher to equip students to succeed outside the bounds of school. They must be able to participate successfully and

meaningfully in society, able to learn without deadlines, rubrics and teachers models. As a teacher I must scaffold students toward being their own teachers. The most rewarding measure of myself as a teacher would be to feel unnecessary in the last week of school while young adults busy themselves in growing, bubbling conversation and learning. Finally, I see my identity as a teacher to be also a mentor. I want to see my students succeed, but most importantly I want to see young adults come to understand their own definition of flourishing. Flourishing is defined by happiness, fulfillment, productivity and community support. Students need to understand that education is important but it does not define who they are or how they succeed. Offering students opportunities to discover what allows them to flourish means giving students a voice in their education. Whether this means offering them freedom in writing, or opening up instruction to be informed by them, students must remain the center of my focus as a teacher. So I look again to the liturgy and I am reminded that educational policy may dictate my movements, but it cannot determine my underlying identity as a passionate learner, curious member of society and mentor of youth. I am reminded that although I am accountable to standards and curriculum, my first allegiance is to my students.