Personal Philosophy of Education
Rough-Draft
Building Respect, Through Building Relationships
Nicole Brown
L23449394
EDUC 305- D07
Professor Ryff
Personal Philosophy of Education
Educators today are held to such high expectations. There are so many things that
teachers have to take into consideration including learning styles, student disabilities and
classroom management just to name a few. Luckily most people who enter this field have a high
passion for student success and greatness. The World Education Blog stated “Teachers play an
integral role in children and young people’s lives. They are often the first significant adult role
model that young children encounter outside of their family, and can influence not only what
they learn at school, but the values, beliefs and attitudes that accompany their lives. Having
trained, qualified and motivated teachers benefits all of us, and especially now, as, fortified with
an ambitious vision in the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda, we look to education to help
secure a prosperous, peaceful, just and sustainable future.” There are so any factors that are put
into education. My paper will go into detail about worldview and philosophy, the philosophy of
schools and learning, and instructional practices.
Sitting here now as a young twenty-five year old driven educator I look back and realize
just how lucky I was growing up. I came from a home where I went to a top notch public school,
participated in sports, had many friends, and got pretty decent grades. At that time I thought for
the most part students were all that lucky, especially the ones that I was surrounded by every
day. Last year I finished coaching my first year of Varsity Soccer at a city school. That was a
huge life changing experience. Out of all the 15 players on my roster, maybe two went home to
a two parent home. Almost all of them had part time jobs to support not only themselves but
their families. Many had to skip practice to drive their parents to jobs, and almost all of them
spoke English as a second language. With that being said, that was the most eye opening
experience of my life, and I am forever grateful for it. Curtis Grahm from Education in the Inner
Personal Philosophy of Education
City Stated “For mostly financial reasons, people who live in the inner city are often left out of
opportunities presented to people living elsewhere. Everyone is affected. Living in the inner city
effects all families, elderly couples and young working class members, but nobody is effected
more than children. Growing up as a child in the inner city is certainly a challenge. These kids
don't have adequate facilities to grow up in a healthy manner. Parks aren't well kept streets are
dirty and above all, the education they are offered is inexcusably poor. For most kids a solid
education is perhaps their only chance to get off the streets, out of the city so that they can create
a better situation for their own kids. But if these inner city kids aren't given the same educational
opportunities as other kids, then they can never get out and the problem just grows.” Coaching at
a city school really made me value the little things such as having more than 5 players show up
for practice, and a smile from those players faces every day even though they came from really
tough lives. In my own classroom, I really want my students to value the little things; I want
them to value the fact that they have a building to learn in each and every day, and teachers who
care about them and their success. I hope to instill a “give back” attitude for my students. I want
them to always go the extra mile for other people, even if it is people who they do not know. You
truly never know someone’s back story and you should be open minded to everyone that you
meet. To help my students realize that not all students are as fortunate as others, I will
incorporate service projects in my lessons throughout the year.
In my own classroom I will work with my students to set rules for the class. We will all
work together as a team, because we can build respect through building relationships. Jonathan
Cohen, from Educational Leadership stated “In respectful schools, everyone's voice is
recognized and appreciated. Unfortunately, what we primarily measure today—and, hence,
recognize as important—are students' reading, math, and science scores. As important as these
are, they do not recognize the varied voices of students, parents, and educators. This is one
Personal Philosophy of Education
reason so many students and adults feel unheard and disrespected in school today.” I believe
that if the students make their rules, within reason then they will be more willing to follow them
as well.
I will implement that my students always put in their best work. I will make sure that they know
that I have an open door policy and am always am available to give them extra help and advice. I
recently found out from a friend a great instructional practice to use in the classroom. Random
Acts of kindness in the Classroom allows students to be grateful and appreciate their classmates.
The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation stated “Studies have shown that students in kind,
positive learning environments do better on tests, learn more (at a faster rate), and are just
generally much, much happier. But is kindness teachable? Yes! Kindness is a skill—and like any
skill, it can be developed with practice and repetition.” There are four simple steps that you can
use in the classroom and create lessons around, Inspire, Empower, Act, and Share. I think that
this will be great for students and also teach them a great lifelong lesson.
Overall I think that these strategies and ideas are great for any classroom, sometimes you
just have to wait to see what kind of students you have and what strategies work best for your
own classroom. Lesson plans can be adjusted over and over again. Having great communication
with students and parents alike is a lust for a successful classroom as well.
Personal Philosophy of Education
References
"Random Acts of Kindness in the Classroom." Discovery Education. N.p., n.d. Web. Oct.-Nov.
2016.
“The World Education Blog.” Wordpress. Oct.5, 2015. Online. Nov.18.2016
https://gemreportunesco.wordpress.com/2016/10/05/supporting-todays-teachers-to-meet-
tomorrows-challenges/
Grahm, Curtis.“Creating A Climate of Respect.”Vol 69. Online article. 2016
http://www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/sept11/vol69/num01/Creating-a-
Climate-of-Respect.aspx
