My Teaching Philosophy

First of all we have to remember that we are doing this for the kids. We have to do everything that we can to help them learn and succeed in life. We have to teach the child instead of the class. The biggest thing that I want to do as a teacher is evolve with my students. I believe that I am going to have to change the way that I teach all the time to be able to effectively teach my children. I do not want to teach the same material the same way every semester for 30 years. I also do not want my classes to be boring. I have had to many classes that were almost impossible to stay awake during. I want to bring a fun energetic atmosphere to my classes and make my students learn without them knowing they are learning.

Technology in the Classroom

I think that using technology in the classroom is a must. You need to be teaching your students with some of the technology that they will be using in the future. As well as they are learning the material that you are presenting to them they are also learning the skill of using computers and other technologies. I also think that when using technology in the classroom you should use it to teach not let the technology teach for you. Technology should be in collaboration with your teaching not a replacement.

Fun Learning Environment

I am going to be a history teacher so creating a fun learning environment is imperative. To students history is probably the second most boring class besides math. I think that you have to get your students engaged in history. You have to do projects, field trips, videos, and any other thing you can do to capture their attention. A formal classroom is not very interesting to a child at a young age who is sitting in your class thinking about video games. I want to make the class interesting to my students so they will want to learn.

Life Long Learner

To be a good teacher I think that you have to learn along side your students. You will never know everything but the pursuit of trying to know everything is what will make you a better teacher. The world is changing rapidly and so are your students. By being a life long learner I think that you can keep up with these changes and embrace new ways of teaching.

Teach not Talk

I feel that this is one of the things that separate a good teacher from a great teacher. I have had countless classes where the teachers just get up in front of the class and talk. Then you have the teachers who get in front of the class and teach. In my opinion this makes the learning process much more enjoyable when the teacher is not just talking at you but is talking to you. I think you have to figure out how your students learn and cater to the way they learn best, not just the way you feel you teach best. Students are changing and I think you need to change with them to be an effective teacher.

Podcasting in the Classroom

Through out my EDM310 class this semester I have become a big fan of Podcast and Videocast. I hope to incorporate podcast into my classes when I become a teacher. I feel that students will better react to having to listen to a ten minute podcast then having to read excessive amounts of material. I do not think that students today have the attention span to sit and read a history text book every night. I think that you still have to make them read, but by backing that reading with multimedia I feel that you enhance the learning experience.