Beliefs to Actions Blog Hop!

I am happy to be hopping along with Whitney from With Love From Texas today to share with you my beliefs of education. I feel this time of year is always the perfect time to reflect on my philosophy of education, in order to prepare me for the beginning of each school year and get me back into a educational mindset after being off all summer!

My philosophy of education is to teach not only the knowledge that students need to know but also instill in them qualities that will help them be successful throughout their lifetime.  Through providing engaging activities where students can self-discover and work with other students I believe that they will increase their own understanding of content.  I believe it is very important for students to have multiple opportunities to explore and learn lifelong skills such as communication, collaboration, and problem solving. 

In my classroom I like to use Kagan Cooperative learning structures and techniques.  I use Kagan procedures to set up table groups in my classroom.  I do this by looking at students reading, writing, and math abilities and then grouping them so that students have the opportunity to work with other learners.  Once teams are set up in my classroom we often do many structures that involved students working with partners or table teams.  One of my favorite Kagan structures is ‘Quiz-Quiz-Trade’ because it allows students the opportunity to communicate with other students while actively reviewing content.

I also use a Responsive Classroom approach in my classroom.  With Responsive Classroom we have daily morning meetings where students practice greeting others, sharing, and listening.  It is an important part of our day because it sets the tone in our classroom that we will respect others and treat others the way we want to be treated.  I like using Responsive Classroom because I have learned to use reinforcing, reminding, and redirecting language to keep my students on task and focused.  Students also take breaks in our classroom and we discuss ways to regain control of our bodies through taking deep breaths, counting to ten and reflection.  These are all skills that will help them through conflict resolution as they grow into adults. 

When reflecting on my philosophy of education I am reminded of a quote by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., “Intelligence plus character-that is the goal of true education.”  I believe this to be true because I see education as an opportunity to develop one’s own self through practicing and obtaining skills that will help them through life.  I believe it is important for me to demonstrate my passion for learning and encourage my students to be lifelong learners as well. 

Thank you for hopping along to read about my educational beliefs! To continue the hop visit Whitney from With Love From Texas!