My Teaching Philosophy
In my opinion, the purpose of school is to prepare one for life and to encourage the desire and ability to deeply pursue one’s interests. In my life, I have needed: imagination, knowledge, varied skills of analysis, a sense of humor, self-confidence, a “get-er-done” attitude, an even keel, friends, and family. The foreign language classroom is a place where all of these things are directly or indirectly nourished.
Knowledge here I use as “facts” – the equations of math, the facts of history, the styles of literature, the grammar and vocabulary of a language, etc. Skills of analysis I use as the tools of engaging with knowledge – knowing how to understand a word problem, how to determine the causes of historical events, how to analyze literature, internalizing a foreign language, etc. I want my students to be able to analyze society through a critical lens as well. A sense of humor keeps my mind positive and my outlook cheery. Self-confidence is what I need to speak with others, pursue my own interests, and even produce work that I will be proud of. A “get-er-done” attitude helps me keep my goals in the forefront and distractions to the side. An even keel is how I respond to bad news and try to learn something when I was not successful the first time. I want my classroom to be a place where my students can develop in each of these areas. Most importantly, I must foster and foment my students’ imaginations. My courses should stimulate all of these areas in a way that is safe and encouraging to every student.
In general, I want to teach because I like being a part of the process where students discover that they can do something on their own. I believe a teacher’s role is to support students in their acquisition of skills to be successful, where success is defined by the student and people who care about the student. I try to design activities that encourage my students to be creative, to show their knowledge in a way that makes them feel pride, to teach them to interact productively with their peers. I employ rules and discipline in the classroom so that students know what rules are acceptable in greater society. In looking at topics like gender in the Roman world using ancient literature, students gain the skills to evaluate and assess their own worlds. The responsibility of self-actualization and navigation lies on the students, who must drive themselves to succeed as well. In my opinion, students learn best when they know there are structures to support them, when they have a goal in mind, and they know how to reach the goal.
In my education and experience, there are some major themes that have stood out as important in language class: communication, support, and practice. Using language to communicate meaning is an essential part of meaningful language learning. In order to focus on production, students must feel comfortable producing language in class. This requires a supportive environment in which participation and effort are included in grading to show students that trying is as important as succeeding. When students do make mistakes, there must be opportunities for students to learn and then show that they have mastered the target structure. In my Latin classroom, students learn to read Latin by learning to produce – writing and speaking their thoughts in Latin.
Latin teaches us about the world as we know it and the world as it was. The corpus of Latin literature teaches morals (Cincinnatus on responsibility, Cornelia Gracchi on parenting, Cicero on friendship) that benefit students greatly as they mature and struggle through their social lives. It carries the weight of antiquity which modern literature cannot and thereby hallows the words and messages. Roman government and religion has greatly influenced our own. The Romans are also here to entertain us: Shakespeare and Tina Fey both have used Roman stories for inspiration. What middle schooler doesn’t love the idea of a guy on a winged horse attacking a lion-goat-snake monster?
It is also important to me to be part of a community of teachers that values constructive criticism and teamwork. My favorite way of processing the feedback I receive from students is in a Critical Friends Group, where I can share my teaching materials and students’ evidence of learning with other educators. I also like communicating with other teachers about what is successful in their classrooms as it part of working in a team with other teachers.
There are two things I want every student to take from my classroom: the tools and attitude to achieve one’s goals and the mandate for universal respect. I hope that each student is able to discover something from their life experiences that excites them and that I have given them at least one tool to help them pursue this passion in a deep and meaningful way.
Knowledge here I use as “facts” – the equations of math, the facts of history, the styles of literature, the grammar and vocabulary of a language, etc. Skills of analysis I use as the tools of engaging with knowledge – knowing how to understand a word problem, how to determine the causes of historical events, how to analyze literature, internalizing a foreign language, etc. I want my students to be able to analyze society through a critical lens as well. A sense of humor keeps my mind positive and my outlook cheery. Self-confidence is what I need to speak with others, pursue my own interests, and even produce work that I will be proud of. A “get-er-done” attitude helps me keep my goals in the forefront and distractions to the side. An even keel is how I respond to bad news and try to learn something when I was not successful the first time. I want my classroom to be a place where my students can develop in each of these areas. Most importantly, I must foster and foment my students’ imaginations. My courses should stimulate all of these areas in a way that is safe and encouraging to every student.
In general, I want to teach because I like being a part of the process where students discover that they can do something on their own. I believe a teacher’s role is to support students in their acquisition of skills to be successful, where success is defined by the student and people who care about the student. I try to design activities that encourage my students to be creative, to show their knowledge in a way that makes them feel pride, to teach them to interact productively with their peers. I employ rules and discipline in the classroom so that students know what rules are acceptable in greater society. In looking at topics like gender in the Roman world using ancient literature, students gain the skills to evaluate and assess their own worlds. The responsibility of self-actualization and navigation lies on the students, who must drive themselves to succeed as well. In my opinion, students learn best when they know there are structures to support them, when they have a goal in mind, and they know how to reach the goal.
In my education and experience, there are some major themes that have stood out as important in language class: communication, support, and practice. Using language to communicate meaning is an essential part of meaningful language learning. In order to focus on production, students must feel comfortable producing language in class. This requires a supportive environment in which participation and effort are included in grading to show students that trying is as important as succeeding. When students do make mistakes, there must be opportunities for students to learn and then show that they have mastered the target structure. In my Latin classroom, students learn to read Latin by learning to produce – writing and speaking their thoughts in Latin.
Latin teaches us about the world as we know it and the world as it was. The corpus of Latin literature teaches morals (Cincinnatus on responsibility, Cornelia Gracchi on parenting, Cicero on friendship) that benefit students greatly as they mature and struggle through their social lives. It carries the weight of antiquity which modern literature cannot and thereby hallows the words and messages. Roman government and religion has greatly influenced our own. The Romans are also here to entertain us: Shakespeare and Tina Fey both have used Roman stories for inspiration. What middle schooler doesn’t love the idea of a guy on a winged horse attacking a lion-goat-snake monster?
It is also important to me to be part of a community of teachers that values constructive criticism and teamwork. My favorite way of processing the feedback I receive from students is in a Critical Friends Group, where I can share my teaching materials and students’ evidence of learning with other educators. I also like communicating with other teachers about what is successful in their classrooms as it part of working in a team with other teachers.
There are two things I want every student to take from my classroom: the tools and attitude to achieve one’s goals and the mandate for universal respect. I hope that each student is able to discover something from their life experiences that excites them and that I have given them at least one tool to help them pursue this passion in a deep and meaningful way.