Teaching and Learning Philosophy

Principles

-Making the classroom environment creative and informative sparks curiosity in learning.

-Having high expectations for academic success and allowing students to feel competent about classroom activities leads to an increased desire to perform well.

-Using mistakes as learning tools facilitates participation and comprehension.

-Expressing care and concern towards students by viewing them as individuals encourages respect.

Making the classroom environment creative and informative sparks curiosity in learning. Children spend a great amount of time in school. It is my goal to make that time as fun and productive as possible for them from the minute they walk through the door to the minute they leave for the day. One of the first things a student notices is the classroom environment. If a student walks into a windowless room with naked white walls, s/he is very likely to dread coming to class because there is nothing there to immediately challenge the student. My classroom will be covered in posters, labels, and student work to invite students to immerse themselves in Spanish culture and inspire them to participate in the learning process by asking questions. Putting up colorful travel posters of foreign Spanish-speaking landmarks and cities is a good way to start. This introduces students to foreign culture in a non-threatening way by being able to view themselves as tourists traveling through exotic places such as Santiago, Barcelona, or Caracas and encourages them to explore these countries and the people who inhabit them. Covering the blackboards, stapler, pencil sharpener, and other classroom articles with the Spanish word for each object motivates students to begin using Spanish vocabulary before the first lesson even begins. And finally, displaying student artwork in an artistic way lets students know that it is their classroom and they should be proud to display what they have learned. In the past, I have created an elaborate musical staff onto which students pasted hand-drawn instruments labeled with proper Spanish vocabulary and a huge food pyramid in Spanish onto which students could place pictures of their favorite foods. I want my classroom environment to promote investigation into Spanish culture and allow students to feel themselves as a valued part of the learning experience.

Having high expectations for academic success and allowing students to feel competent about classroom activities leads to an increased desire to perform well. Learning is a complicated process that is often unnecessarily made even more complicated through tracking and labeling students. If a student believes that my goals for them are lower than for any other student, they will not attempt to perform as well. However, if expectations are set high at the beginning of the year and it is made clear to all students that I expect the same high level of participation, performance will increase. By showing I have faith in students' abilities to succeed and by giving them the tools and confidence to do so, I am much more likely to see an increased effort in the students' desire to perform well. This became evident to me while teaching a bright Spanish I student from a "vocational" educational track. Even though he did rather well on tests and quizzes, he rarely turned in assignments and often skipped class. He claimed that he was not an honors student and therefore should not be expected to put forth as much effort as those who were. He was already so discouraged with the way people perceived him that he was not even willing to try. I explained to him that his class was taught in exactly the same way as the corresponding honors Spanish I class, was not "dumbed down" at all, and showed him where his grade would be if he only turned in all of the assignments. After this confrontation, his attitude began to change. He began to see that I expected the same levels of participation from all my students, regardless of their backgrounds and that he could easily achieve this level if he only turned in his assignments. His self-esteem improved dramatically when he realized that he could successfully participate on the same level as other students who were thought to be "so much better" than him. These high standards for academic achievement and teacher-guided cultivation of self-confidence pushes students to feel capable of accomplishing more than they ever thought possible on their own.

Using mistakes as learning tools facilitates participation and comprehension. No student should ever be ashamed to make a mistake. Mistakes are part of life and an integral part of the learning process. By explaining early in the year to my classes that making mistakes is normal, but it is what you do with those mistakes that makes a difference, I hope to create an atmosphere that advocates experimentation and reflection. I give students the opportunity to make test and quiz corrections for partial points on a regular basis because it facilitates self-learning and greater comprehension. If a student is made to feel ashamed of their failures, they are much less likely to try again for fear of the same embarrassing results. However, if a student knows they are accepted no matter what the outcome is of their academic attempts, then those mistakes are turned into learning tools for future performances and they are further encouraged to participate in the academic process. Because learning any foreign language involves a great deal of memorization and the concepts continually build upon each other, catching mistakes early is imperative to success in advanced Spanish classes. To me, the whole point of teaching Spanish or any other subject centers around seeing a student's "light bulb" go off when the material finally makes sense to them and they are able to apply it on their own. Whether this happens before a quiz, or after a child has done poorly on a quiz and learns to correct their own mistakes is irrelevant as long as they grasp the concepts being taught and is never ashamed of trying to learn.

Expressing care and concern towards students by viewing them as individuals encourages respect. Students come from various backgrounds and these backgrounds sometimes interfere with what and how students learn in the classroom. Showing care and concern for each student is an important part of getting to know them as a whole person. Taking the time to ask questions about their outside interests and finding ways to relate those interests to classroom learning can make the time spent in a classroom much more productive. I also often send home cards to students who have been ill for prolonged periods of time along with their class work to show I honestly care about them. I believe this makes the student feel they are an appreciated part of the class and by being so, makes an important contribution to the learning process. I not only send home notes to sick students, but also when I notice there is something else going on outside of class that is impacting the student's concentration on learning. For example, if I hear the student is going through a family divorce, has gotten pregnant, or is experiencing other types of family disturbances, I have found that taking the time to send a note that just says "Hang in there" can make a huge difference. When a student sees that you care about them as a complete person, they show more respect towards you and are more likely to try harder in class to show you this admiration.

"An understanding heart is everything in a teacher, and cannot be esteemed highly enough. One looks back with appreciation to the brilliant teachers, but with gratitude to those who touched our human feeling. The curriculum is so much necessary raw material, but warmth is the vital element for the growing plant and for the soul of the child." ---Carl Jung