There are many different type of philosophies that a teacher can associate them self with as they enter

the world of teaching. The four most well known philosophies are Social Reconstruction, Progressivism, Essentialism, and Perennialism. Each of these philosophies leans more towards being either student or teacher centered and they are all unique from the others in their own ways. The philosophy that I identify with the most is Progressivism which is centered around the students. As teachers, I believe that it is our job to cater to the needs of our students and give them the best learning experience they can possibly have. It is important to make sure that the students, especially at the age that we I am going to be teaching, can relate to the lessons teachers create and have a desire to learn about the material. One of the reasons why I a line myself with the Progressivism theory is because I do believe that lessons in the classroom should be centered around the students. Some of the characteristics that shape a person into being a progressivist is to emphasize on real world problem solving, emphasis on more holistic type of development and the content must be relevant and valuable in the childs present life and active learning. (Eggen & Kauchk, 2011) I believe fully in these characteristics as an educator. Another main characteristic of Progressivism is that there are constant informal assessments and a strong sense of learner responsibility, (Eggen & Kauchk, 2011) which is another thing that I competely agree with. I believe that the students work and curriculum should tie in with their daily lives; therefore they will feel the desire to learn more since they can relate to the material. For example, if I was teaching fourth grade and my class was interested in sports, which the majority of fourth graders, especially boys, are, then I would use sport equipment or

the sports theme during lessons to make it relevant. I could incorporate this in my math lessons by teaching a multiplication lesson with baseballs, or numbers of teams in a league. This way, when the students read the word problem, it is something they are fascinated with and will be able to understand the problem on a more personal level. I plan on working on a more holistic type of development by using physical activities to educate my classroom. I will do this by having hand motions for songs and using tangible items all throughout my curriculum. For example, if we are learning about multiplying or dividing, I would have objects for the students to have on their desks to move around and manipulate instead of me, the educator, just writing on the board. I also believe that it is extremely important to give the students a say in what they learn and take that into consideration when planning out lessons. I think that this will be beneficial because students will study in greater depth when they are focusing on a topic that they can relate to. I understand that some curriculum is set and that it cannot be moved around based on what the teacher or class desires due to local and state education board standards. However, pulling in a small portion of curriculum that entices the students will motivate them to get a higher level of education where they can chose what they want to learn in a college setting. I also believe that it is important for students to become independent learners and acquire the skills to think critically in order to be successful in their future educational and work careers. I will push my students in my classroom to become these type of learners by providing them material that is stimulating and interesting while still making it challenging so that they are pushed to think farther beyond what they thought that they were capable of. This will be something that I will get better at with time and experience

in the field, but I will start this out by having a topic of the day in my class that is thought provoking that each student must answer. This is how I would also do informal assessments regularly. The students can write down there answers in a notebook and I can read through them every day to make sure they complete what is asked of them. Also, I can assess regularly by having group projects and assignments were the students have to speak aloud to ensure they understand the topic for the day. While other philosophies have their place in the educational system and can be executed flawlessly by other educators, I know they are not suitable for me. The main philosophy that I do not think I would align with is Perennialism because I do not believe that lecturing in a high structure environment is what is best for students learning. Based on my beliefs, I think that students learn best in a calming environment where they feel free to ask questions and be a main contributor to the learning process. If the class is in a lecture setting where they are seated listening to the teacher talk at them as opposed to talking to them then they will not be absorb the information as successfully as if they students were doing the learning first hand. I do not believe that the other philosophies alone would work in my classroom, because I do not believe in lecturing and focusing on purely academic work. However, I do believe that it is important to use aspects of all of the other philosophies in my classroom and integrate them into my philosophy because every student learns differently and I have to make sure I accommodate to all of their educational needs. I believe that teaching should combine both academics and social aspects that add fun to the learning day. If teachers make education enjoyable and relate it to the problems and activities that

their students are involved in then they will become more independent and involved learners.

Work Cited Eggen. , & Kauchk, (2011). Introduction to Teaching . (4 ed.). Boston: Pearson.