Running head: PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY PAPER1
Every kid, Everywhere Matters
Timothy D. Gardiner
Student ID # : 24539284
EDUC 504 – B07 LUO
Liberty University
Dr. Stallings
PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY PAPER 2
Abstract
Education helps set the foundation for a student’s long term success or failures. Teachers
can help students reach their full potential when they help them generate and achieve positive
goals, and positively demonstrate how to value others. Educational facilities should aim to help
teachers provide individual learning opportunities. In my instructional practice as a teacher, I will
help students achieve their goals by helping them understand that they are uniquely created and
loved. Students should understand that no matter their intellectual capabilities, race or gender
that they are valuable. As a teacher, I will take responsibility for my classroom and hold learners
of all different capabilities to their own highest standard of excellence.
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Personal Philosophy of Education
Every kid, everywhere, matters. Today’s teachers are challenged with leading and
teaching very diverse needs in the classroom. It is essential that students are surrounded by
caring adults who can help them reach personal, achievable goals at home, school and the
community. I believe that schools by design have become one of the main influences in a
student’s life and hold a great deal of responsibility for who students become as adults.
Education helps set the foundation for a student’s long term success or failures. Teachers can
help students reach their full potential when they help them generate and achieve positive goals,
and positively demonstrate how to value others.
Philosophy of schools and learning
A positive educational experience has the potential to make or break a child’s future. As a
child develops, educational facilities should have a plan to come alongside the families of each
student to help them develop and achieve their goals. Long range impact only happens one
moment at a time. Students in school transition each year to a new classroom and so schools
should work diligently to hire teachers who care about individuals and see to the individual
needs of a student each day. A core essence of a successful person is how they treat others. As a
Christian teacher we may not be able to directly share our faith in a public classroom, but we can
work to implement Christian virtues that help students become better people. In the book of
Matthew, Jesus explains that one should “’Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with
all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the
second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself’” (Matthew 22:37-39, New International
Version). Regardless as to whether we work in a Christian or Public school the philosophy to
love others should be a top priority for teachers. By making it a top priority for themselves,
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teachers, also make it a top priority for students. As students grow out of the educational system,
the institutions they have attended should have impacted them in such a way that they will hold
true to these values these as adults.
I believe that an educational philosophy that holds the needs of individuals as a top
priority can make a better lifelong impact than an education based on performance based ideals.
In an article about technology in learning environments the authors state “The way learners
think; their worldviews, and their mindsets, impact on their ability to construct
knowledge”(Barak & Levenberg, 2016). I believe that this is true across the educational field.
Schools have a responsibility to develop individuals along with the community that they live in.
As students construct knowledge over time; schools, parents and communities should work
together to develop learning. Schools should especially be mindful of individual needs and a
student’s psychological condition so they can adapt learning for the best outcome of each
student.
Instructional Practice
As students become more adept at understanding themselves, they also come to understand the
truth as it pertains to them. As a Christian educator the foundation for truth lies in Christ. I do not
believe that it is advantageous for a Christian educator to force or push their beliefs on students,
but the way we treat students can lead them to the truth and help them develop character. Each
individual is ultimately in charge of what they believe. In the classroom it is essential to help
students develop values and standards that will help them become productive members of
society, while also preparing them intellectually so that they can reach their full potential. It is
the teacher's responsibility to model this type of character to students.
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In the classroom, there are many different methods a teacher can use to help students
grow. I think it is important to use different strategies throughout the day to keep students
engaged. Hands on learning can be of great value as stated in this article. It says “Hands-on
engagement offers a nourishing counterbalance to screen-based activity, providing an
opportunity for authentic, sensory experiences”(Blakely & McFayden. 2015). In most areas of
the curriculum I think there is a valuable space for hands on learning. In math, students can
benefit from cooperative learning where they are working with a group. This can help top level
students and lower level students by allowing them to interact and challenge each other. In
science top down experimental learning can be used to allow students to see the final product,
done by the teacher, but then be allowed to experiment to try and reproduce successfully. History
offers the opportunity for debates that include all students and their opinions while having a
guided discussion with the teacher involved. It is essential for a teacher to implement different
strategies that cater to different students throughout the class. Teachers should work hard to
diversify methods of learning. Challenging students to work outside of their comfort zone may
stretch them, but switching methods throughout the day will also cater to what students do well
at some point in the day.
Though I do not currently teach in a school, being Youth Pastor has helped me to allow
for a variety of different strategies for helping students learn. I tend to favor hands on and
cooperative learning. In the classrooms at church, discussion based, cooperative groups help
students wrestle with issues. They regularly are encouraged to challenge each other. Peer
interaction allows them to maintain a certain amount of accountability within their community.
In the classroom, I think cooperative learning will also help students narrow the gap between top
flight students and lower end students. Teaching in many different ways can help students of all
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strengths and weaknesses expand their learning ability. It would always be my goal to allow
students to grow and learn in the classroom. Catering to individual learning situations would be
ideal, but students also need to be challenged to step outside of their comfort zone and diversify
their learning methods. I would hope that this is also accomplished in a classroom that I taught.
Teacher – Learner Relationships
Being a Christian teacher makes for an easy evaluation process as to whether or not a teacher has
been successful in their role. By modeling a godly character, teachers “set a tone that directs and
redirects students and ourselves into walking in God’s way of truth and uprightness”
(Brummelen, 2009). Although a student may not be a Christian, the student should be a better
person for having been in your class. At the very least they should know that they are cared about
by their teacher and hopefully through that see that they are also loved by Jesus. Teachers should
model character and help develop students as people but also allow for students to express
themselves in their learning. Students should feel free to experiment and fail in an encouraging
environment where they are safe. Students should also feel comfortable expressing themselves in
a variety of different ways through classroom learning environments. Students should feel that
teachers available to celebrate successes and learn from failures. They should have the
opportunity to model the character qualities of the teacher.
Diversity
In education diversity will always be a factor. Students, parents and colleagues all come from
different backgrounds. In an article about teachers' views on diversity the authors state “Being
willing to learn ‘what happens in the world of the children’ is a key component of teachers’
learning about classroom diversity” (Beihammer, Jokikokko & Uitto, 2019). It is the
responsibility of the teacher to know the backgrounds of where their kids and parents come from
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and how to best relate to them. Students should fell loved regardless of their background. They
should feel supported by their teachers and community no matter their race, gender or academic
acuity. Teachers should take into consideration all aspects of a child’s background and work
accommodate their needs as a learner. Depending on the needs of learners, teachers should use
methodologies that best fit their students. Teachers should work hard to not become callous to
the needs of their students and should treat special needs with special care.
My Calling
As a Christian I feel that my ultimate calling is not in the classroom, but it is to help all
people understand that Jesus is for them and that he loves them. In my job as a Youth Pastor I
find great reward in coming alongside families and helping them love their kids into a
relationship with Jesus. It is my goal and my pleasure to see kids succeed in both their faith and
the secular world. I aim to show kids that not everyone has to be a “super Christian”, instead,
that they just need to do their best to make wise choices and commit to learning more about
Jesus. I feel sometimes that working in a church can limit your reach into the lives of students.
Schools are in need of teachers with integrity and compassion for students and so in transitioning
into education in a secular space I would hope that my actions and teaching would show the love
of Christ to students, faculty and parents who desperately need to be cared for. It is not my goal
or my calling to “make” people convert to Christianity, but only to show them that the love of
Christ is a real thing and it can have meaning in their life.
Conclusion
As Christian educators, it should be of extra importance to help students reach their full
potential. Teachers should lead with integrity and character so that students have an example to
follow as they mature. Schools should work hard to value individual students and work with their
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community to help students grow into productive members of society. In the classroom, teachers
should also focus on how they can help individuals develop by using a variety of different
teaching methods and allowing students to experiment with hands on learning. Teachers need to
be a clear role model for students to do the right thing, but also be a compassionate, consistent
leader students can count on. Teachers should be careful to exclude differences and encourage
students to embrace who they are and where they come from. As a Christian we should recognize
that Every kid, everywhere matters and because Jesus values them we should also value them
greatly.
PERSONAL PHILOSOPHY PAPER 9
Reference:
Barak, M., & Levengberg, A. (2016). Flexible thinking in learning: An individual differences
measure for learning in technology-enhanced environments. Computers and
Education , 99, 39–52. https://doi.org/https://doi-
org.ezproxy.liberty.edu/10.1016/j.compedu.2016.04.003
Blakely., & McFayden, J. (2015). Curiosity over conformity: The Maker’s Pallette – a case for
hands on learning. Art, Design & Communication in Higher Education. 14(2),
131-143. https://doi-org.ezproxy.liberty.edu/10.1386/adch. 14.2.131_1
Brummelen, H. V. (2009). Walking with god in the classroom. Colorado Springs , Colorado :
Purposeful Designs .
Hyry-Beihammer, E. K., Jokikokko, K., & Uitto, M. (2019). Emotions involved in encountering
classroom diversity: Beginning teachers’ stories. British Educational Research
Journal, 45(6). https://doi.org/https://doi-org.ezproxy.liberty.edu/10.1002/berj.3554
