Thoughts on Teaching
Teaching Philosophy
I believe people learn based on their memorable experiences, including exciting moments, decision-making, and making efforts to answer key questions. Therefore, I believe student-centered activities are the best way for students to learn. Some of the best strategies for students to learn include community-based projects that have real-world application and inquiry-based lessons in which students search to find the answers themselves. In the use of these strategies, the classroom becomes more student-focused with the teacher serving as a facilitator and guide through various activities. The students become the agents of their own learning, rather than passive observers of information.
Using these strategies, teachers are given more opportunities to foster a growth mindset in their students. It is incredibly important to remind students to look back on and track their growth to see that their effort truly makes a difference. Seeing improvement is always a great motivation to learn more. By experiencing lessons, students have a greater opportunity to practice content-literacy skills, including reading sources, evaluating for credibility, collaboration, creativity, and written and oral communication. These skills can be used across disciplines and applied to various situations in the real world. By practicing these skills, students will be better prepared for their transition into independent adulthood.
Lastly, I think it is incredibly important to feel understood, heard, and cared for before a student will be able to learn best. Students who feel misunderstood and unwelcome in a classroom will seldom show their best work because they feel it lacks value. Teachers must make an effort to connect with students and their lives outside the classroom to provide a meaningful experience for students in the classroom. Once a student's social and emotional needs are met, they can start to learn at their full potential. These connections also lend to improving classroom behavior as the teacher can better understand why a student acts the way they do.
Teaching Social Studies
Social studies education is aimed to create competent citizens with life skills for success after graduation. My ultimate goal is for students to develop the skills to be successful in the increasingly globalized world by developing knowledge about and skills to interact with the world they live in. Teaching social studies is more than knowledge about history and where things are on a map. I want to emphasize the "Why" in all of my lessons, so students can see a direct relationship between the activities & content in class and their lives to make it meaningful to them. My role as a social studies teacher also extends to helping them develop writing skills, even though I am not their English teacher. In my classroom, I aim to develop students' academic skills and critical thinking to prepare them for life after secondary school.