Research Based Philosophy of Education

Katie Henline

My goal as a teacher is to enrich the minds of young students. I will teach

students to take ownership of their learning by interacting with others. Students will
learn to share their ideas and use the ideas of others to better themselves. They will
gain knowledge through technology, self-respect, and exploration. As I implement these
practices, they will be supported by theories that have been studied and tested.
Vygotsky believed that children learn by play and by interacting with other peers.
In my classroom I want to my students to be in charge of their own learning. In order to
do this they must interact with others and learn through social interactions. I will allow
for story telling during breakfast and during morning work. My students will be able to
talk with one another and solve problems together. In order to promote social interaction
I will give my students an opportunity to talk about how they should solve a problem.
Talking and discussing with others will help my student understand how to talk to one
another as well as find new ways to approach learning. This will strengthen my students
zone of proximal development because they will learn how to work with peers but also
build upon their independent learning. Vygotsky believes that children need to
understand their roles and the role of others. They must understand why they may or
may not do something.
My classroom will be a place where positive reinforcement is always
implemented. My students will be a part of the positive reinforcement because they will
reward their classmates for something that they witnessed them doing well throughout
the day. Skinner believed that children learn by being rewarded or encouraged. If
children do what is expected of them they will receive praise that is related to their
action. He believes that operant conditioning is when a reward or consequence is given

for an action. If the child acts out then they will need to be disciplined. In order to
implement Skinners theory I will set high standards and boundaries. Negative
reinforcement and punishment will only need to be used at a minimum rate. If we praise
students, they will continue to exhibit this behavior. Students who are not doing what is
expected can then see why you are praising the other child. Children learn by examples
and tend to follow what their other peers are doing. As a teacher I will praise the positive
behaviors and redirect my students that need to make better choices. Skinner stated
that a child must adapt to the environment and understand their boundaries.
Children go through four stages of intellectual development. All children learn
during these stages. In order to build upon each intellectual stage, I will implement
hands on learning where students can explore, question, and observe. Piaget believes
that children build schemas where they organize knowledge and process their
understanding of the world. Children associate objects with labels and then categorize
those objects. Schemas are created by exploration and by observing others. I will
incorporate technology into my classroom so that students can take virtual field trips.
This encourages students to build upon their schemas and background knowledge.
Movement is developmentally appropriate for the age group that I teach. I will
encourage movement through transitions and group work. Children are not able to sit
still for long periods of time and learning will not occur if children cannot get their
wiggles out.
Gardner states that everyone is born with one specific learning intelligence.
Children build upon their other intelligences by experience. Learning occurs when the
childs intelligence is being reached. Different learning approaches and strategies create

a learning environment for all students. I will teach my students by using multiple
Medias and resources. For example, if I use a video it will reach several of my learners.
A video meets a visual learners needs because they are able to see pictures. A video
will meet a musical learners needs because they can hear it and sing along. After the
video I can include a discussion. This discussion will encourage my verbal learners to
talk with another student about what they heard. My kinesthetic learner can act out or
demonstrate something that they learned from the video or presentation. Students will
engage in learning if I tap into their learning intelligences and inspire them to build upon
others.
Blooms theory states that children have a hierarchy of learning. Students must
master the first level of knowledge before they can progress to the higher levels of
thinking. This shows where learning begins and how learning prospers. Asking open
ended questions will provide my students with an opportunity to explain their thinking. I
can provide time for the child to justify the answer to another student and listen to their
ideas. They can foster a discussion and broaden their understanding. Providing
exploration will help the child to think about the task and try and solve or think on their
own. When students are exploring I will monitor their learning in order to address any
misunderstandings. This will build on their experiences as well as teach them how to
organize their learning and knowledge.
Observation is an important part of learning. Bandura believes that children learn
by observation. When a child observes someone else they learn to repeat behaviors or
representations that they observed. Observations can be positive or negative. An
observation may not change a behavior. Learning is accomplished by observation or

modeling. In my classroom I do a I do, we do, you do approach. This is a way for me

to model, the students to try it with me and then for them to complete the task on their
own. I can measure if the student actually learned what I modeled by recreating the task
or by explaining the task to another peer. Modeling in my classroom is motivating so
that children are able to retain and reproduce the information. I motivate my learners by
making them a part of my lessons and using them as my models.
Students learn by doing and by actions. Bruner believes that information and
knowledge is stored and encoded in memory. He feels that a childs thinking should be
facilitated. Actions are recorded in the brains of children. The action is associated with
an image or an icon. As a teacher I will give students activities where they can
categorize and sort out their ideas. When a child learns something new in the classroom
it will be important to associate an image as well to broaden their knowledge. Providing
moments for building background knowledge will help the child add onto previously
learned knowledge or create a new memory. Bruner believes that a child should be able
to hear a word and give it an association such as a dog. If a child hears dog they
should be able to say a dog is brown and it barks. The symbolic mode would be more of
the child explaining their learning and making inferences about a dog.
Experiencing society and interacting in the environment through curriculum is
believed by Dewey to be the most effective way of learning. Children need to interact,
reflect, experience and work together. Social, emotional, and intellectual learning is
important for children to learn how to cope in society. Education is growth within ones
society. Dewey believed that real-life tasks and challenges promote learning. Inspiring
my students may include providing them with books that spark their interests. I will

guide my students with their choices but give them space to make mistakes so that they
can learn how to fix them. As their teacher I will teach them how to cope and adjust their
emotions. Students will participate in role playing. This will include situations that deal
with bullying, talking to others, and experiences of the real world. Class meetings in my
classroom will encourage discussion where feelings can be shared. We will put our
words into actions and solve our classroom problems as a whole. Peers will reflect on
each others work and encourage one another to improve their learning. Students have
to be able to function. They need to know what is appropriate and if it is not appropriate
they need to know how to fix it. Learning will not happen if my students minds will not
allow them to. I have to fill their hearts before I can fill their brains.
Children thrive on respect and being a part of a safe environment. My classroom
will be a learning experience. It will foster learning and provide students with a level of
acceptance as well as respect. I will encourage students to take their learning into their
own hands and question their findings. Students will learn to be citizens and create
goals that will lead to a productive future.

References

Atherton, J. S. (2013). Learning and Teaching; Bloom's taxonomy. Retrieved from

http://www.learningandteaching.info/learning/bloomtax.htm
Gardner, H. (2010). Multiple intelligences.
http://www.howardgardner.com/MI/mi.html
McLeod, S. A. (2011). Bandura-Social Learning Theory. Retrieved from
http://www.simplypsychology.org/bandura.html
McLeod, S. A. (2008). Bruner. Retrieved from
http://www.simplypsychology.org/bruner.html
McLeod, S. A. (2009). Jean Piaget. Retrieved from
http://www.simplypsychology.org/piaget.html
McLeod, S. A. (2007). Lev Vygotsky. Retrieved from
http://www.simplypsychology.org/vygotsky.html
Richard, F. (2013). John Dewey. Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy.
http://www.iep.utm.edu/dewey/
(2014). PBS Learning. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/onlyateacher/john.html