Teaching Philosophy

I believe strongly in building a supportive, inclusive, success oriented,

positive, and challenging learning environments. I seek to create a space
that values participatory engagement with students, making use of dynamic
learning activities that demand and challenge the students to expect more
from learning then monologues and text books. I have high expectations for
myself and for my students, but believe expectations can be met in a
multitude of ways. I forgo any narrow notion of success and achievement,
and instead embrace a broad based differentiated approach to student
success. I firmly believe in multiple intelligences, allowing myself and
students to experiment in terms of demonstrating achieved learning goals.
Whatever it takes! This is how I orient and navigate myself to the
world, and naturally how I approach student success. I think student failure is
a reflection of an erroneous teaching approach. Student failure therefore
directly implicates the teacher in this failure. Students need to be
approached in a way that respects individual learning styles. It is explicitly
clear to me that all activities, assignments, and tests must be developed in
such a way that respects and complements various intelligences and student
approaches. All students need to experience success, not by giving it to
them, but by providing them the opportunity to achieve success in a way
that makes use of their unique abilities. By achieving success they build
confidence and more importantly by approaching it in a way that is personal
to them, they own that success.

Taking students success one step further,

I believe evaluation and assessment are essential components to ensuring

achievement. All assignments must have rubrics with clear expectations.
Rough drafts with peer and teacher evaluations, outlining specifically where
they fell short of the rubric expectations, helps direct students toward clear
achievement goals, and what exactly is expected of them. Multiple attempts
at tests, redoing assignments, sliding due dates, anything to engage
students and ensure they dont feel like giving up, or that they have been
given up on.
I firmly believe that a success oriented approach helps students
understand who they are as a learner, and significantly who they are as a
person, and how they might fit into an increasingly complex world. Studies
show that very little of the details of what students learn in class are
remembered. But confidence and self-actualization cannot simply be
forgotten. This is what I hope to impart to students beyond the curriculum.
Establishing in students a genuine feeling that they are valued and capable,
eventually having a place beyond school, where they can demonstrate their
abilities and add value to society, and in turn feel valued. This is my
philosophical approach to education, and how I think we can build stronger
and happier class rooms and communities.