Emerging Teaching Philosophy

by
Kayla Stephens

EDRD 730S
April 2015
Dr. Victoria Oglan

Before coming to this class, the mainstream industrial format

of the classroom was what I planned on executing in my classroom. It
wasnt until I came to this class that I understood that every single
detail in my classroom matters. From the way I set up my classroom to
the amount of time that I speak compared to the amount of time my
students talk matters. The classroom needs to be learning-centered
and collaboration and talking is encouraged. My teaching style needs
to be based upon the needs of my students and also include standards
and guidelines for students so that they can have a sense of structure
in the classroom. Literacy, also, needs to be a key factor in my
classroom. I never realized that literacy meant so many things. Before
I thought that it pertained just to reading but it encompasses so much
more than that. True literacy includes reading, writing, listening,
speaking, thinking, viewing, and computing. My teaching philosophy
has not necessarily changed from the beginning of this class but it has
definitely grown and sprouted into more intricate detail. I have learned
so much in this class but these are the top five things I will most
definitely take from this class:

Use multiple outlets while teaching. There is no one right way to

teach.
Assessment is so much more than regurgitation.
Reading and understanding go hand in hand. There is no
learning taking place if a student can not comprehend what they
are reading.

Literacy is so much more than knowing how to read and write.

Its a crucial part of the learning experience.

As a teacher, you should talk less and your students should talk
more.

Use multiple outlets while teaching. There is no one right way to

teach.
Students have a very short attention span and when you include
them in the lesson and allow them to think critically about a subject
and allow them to become creative, their interest and understanding in
a certain subject will grow and they will become more proficient
students. The factory model of the classroom is not the best format
that a teacher can use. Allowing the students to move around and use
different types of media such as movies, music, art, and even poetry
will allow for students to understand a certain topic or content in a
more real way, that they possibly could relate to more. Teachers have
to broaden their horizons while teaching. Textbooks are not bad, but
they cannot be the only source of information for students. Feathers
uses the example of using films in social studies classrooms in her
book Infotext, Films that help students understand historical settings
and events, demonstrations and activities that explain ideas and
explain concepts, and lectures that provide additional information or
explanation are all helpful (Feathers, 1993, pg. 36). This a very good

example of how using different outlets to teach a topic can help

students visual a concept better and better understand it as well.
Assessment is so much more than regurgitation.
Throughout my scholastic career, the only assessments that I
have ever known were tests and quizzes. Tests and quizzes are, as I
have learned, not always the best way to gauge what a student has
learned. Kohn states that, What they primarily seem to be measuring
is how much a student has crammed into his short-term
memory(Kohn, 1999, pg. 79). And I agree with that statement
completely. Ive never heard of a teacher grading his/her students
work based just upon completion. There was always so much pressure
and high stakes when it came to that test on Friday. So for me, as a
future teacher, that was what I had planned on doing as well. I would
teach a unit for three or four weeks and then on a certain Friday I
would pass out a test to assess my students knowledge. Then I took
this class and my eyes were opened to so many strategies that can
gauge a students knowledge without them just having to memorize
something and regurgitate it. Fisher and Frey in their book Improving
Adolescent Literacy: Content Area Strategies at Work, state,
Assessments are the link between teaching and learning. This
concept lies at the heart of teaching because our classrooms are based
on learner-centered instruction. This means the teacher doesnt
merely march lockstep through the content with the needs of the

learner. These needs are identified through ongoing assessment that

is linked to subsequent instruction (Fisher & Frey, 2012, pg. 158-159).
Assessment is very important in understanding where your students
are in their learning, however, there are so many different looks that
assessment can have. The less stress and pressure you can put on
your students, the better. Making sure they are learning the material
and making sure they are engaged is so much more important than
making sure they can recite the test answers back to you.

Reading and understanding go hand in hand. There is no learning

taking place if a student can not comprehend what he/she is reading.
I never understood why Ive always done so poorly in math and
science. I used to think I just wasnt very gifted in those two subjects.
Then I discovered that I was never taught how to read the content
material. I read the books and could memorize the words but I never
understood it. Feathers states in her book, Infotext, ...comprehending
text involves much more than knowing words, and only a concept
expert can help you understand the background information, the
vocabulary, and even the style of writing of each text. This is why it is
so important for content teachers to teach their students how to read
in their subject (Feathers, 1993, pg. 11). Most teachers believe it is
the English teachers job to teach the students to read, however,
every content area is different and each subjects texts are read in a

unique way. This is why teachers need to teach literacy to their

students based upon the material for the subject content area.

Literacy is more than just knowing how to read and write. Being
literate is a crucial step in the learning process.
Literacy does not just include reading and writing. It
encompasses so many different formats, each unique to its own
particular subject. Literacy includes reading, writing, listening,
speaking, thinking, viewing, and computing. Just because a student is
having a hard time understanding what they are reading in a certain
subject does not mean they are illiterate or are not bright and
educated. Ruddell states in her book, Teaching Content Reading and
Writing, Watch them go through MAD magazine, comic books,
drivers training manuals, Rolling Stone, or what ever the current
literacy fad happens be (Ruddell, 2004, pg. 7). This statement shows
how students are very literate in something with which that are
familiar. If teachers take the time to teach their students how to
become literate in a certain subject, students will become more
comfortable with the content, and therefore become more successful in
their classes and their grades will improve as well as their selfconfidence.
As a teacher, you should talk less and your students should talk more.

One of the main things that I have learned is that students want to talk. As long as
you can direct their conversations toward the subject you are teaching, talking is ok.
Students can get their questions and concerns answered about a certain topic when they
know they are not the only ones wondering the same thing. Fisher and Frey state, A
primary goal of classroom instruction is to move from teacher-directed instruction to
student centered learning (Fisher and Frey, 2011, pg. 20). Learning needs to be centered
on the students so that if they have certain questions they want answered they have that
opportunity to have their question answered. If the teacher is constantly talking and
lecturing the students may or may not feel comfortable interrupting the teacher by
asking question they are confused about. Students need to know that they have a voice
and that they have every right to have their questions answered, regardless if it is on the
lesson plan for that day or not. Research shows that allowing students to talk more to
each other while discussing the content leads to more success in the classroom.
Zemelman put in a curriculum that, calls for much less teacher presentation and
domination, far more active student learning, and constantly shifting, decentralized
groupings (Zemelman et al., 2005, pg. 228). His researched showed, students of all
grade levels show significant achievement gains across the curriculum when they are
organized into collaborative groupings and projects. (Zemelman et al., 2005, pg. 229).
Therefore, there is reasoning and research behind this teaching theory, and its one that I
plan to use in my classroom.
In conclusion, my teaching philosophy has definitely been
expanded and modified for the betterment of my teaching style for my
future students and myself. The more I focus on what would be best

for my students, rather than what would be easier and less stressful for
me, the more my students will know that their education is important
and that they will be challenged in a safe and healthy way. I think as
teachers, we need to constantly be educating ourselves more and
assessing our students so that as teachers, we can better serve them
with their education.

Works Cited

Feathers, K. (1993). Infotext. Markham, Ontario: Pippin.

Fisher, D., & Frey, N. (2012). Improving adolescent literacy: Content area strategies at
work. (3 ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson Education.
Kohn, A. (1999). The schools our children deserve. NY: Houghton Millin.
Ruddell, M. (2004). Teaching content reading and writing. Hoboken, NJ:
John Wiley & Sons
Zemelman, S., Daniels, H. & Hyde, A. (2005). Best Practice.
Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.