A philosophy of education is, “a set of beliefs about how children develop and learn and what and how and they should be taught,” as defined by George Morrison. I believe that the philosophy of education helps guide educators to ways of teaching with passion and strong beliefs. I believe all teachers have their own philosophy. I know I do.
The philosophy of education is mainly a set of ideas to guide teachers to the way they want to teach their students. As I would like to be a preschool teacher, I believe that all children are unique and they have abilities to learn by themselves. I believe all children are like blank canvases that need to be painted with many different beautiful colors. It depends on adults to determine what colors they want to paint on. Children are also born such as a small little tree. When the tree is still young we can bend it, but when it gets older and bigger it is harder to bend it the way you want it to be. As a preschool teacher, it is very important to guide and provide access to information to get a better foundation in their early lives. When they grow up I hope they will grow to be strong adults with good attitude toward their lives.
In addition, I believe strongly in the theories of Jean Piaget and believe that children learn best with hands-on experiences when they are ready to learn. Environment plays an important role to help build who they are, and for me it is exciting to watch children explore the world around them. Children learn well when they are in an environment that facilitates their learning. Children cannot learn well without support. The role of adults in children’s learning is to be a model and provider who provides effective activities and an opportunity to learn and grow. I feel that I will be an effective teacher because I am very patient, caring and passionate about children.
Adults also need to create a physically appropriate early childhood environment to support children’s development and learning. A supportive environment for young children includes the belief that all children can learn and allow children to make mistakes. The material available for children should be able to be used to develop a variety of skills for children. The curriculum should involve the interests of the children, and have end-goals and make learning relevant to life. The teacher’s role in guiding behavior is to be a model for children and to motivate them to reach their goal.
The role of teachers when working with parents and families in children’s learning is to promote family involvement and support and empower the parents in all respects of children development and learning. The role of culture in children’s learning is to form behavior and psychology of children. The role of teachers when working with special needs children is to understand the unique characteristics of each child and develop appropriate approaches for them. Being an effective teacher means being deliberate and careful when thinking about children and planning ahead during and after class.
To sum up, I believe all children can learn. I am giving them the tools to become successful in their lives, to believe in themselves and to love themselves. The expression that children are born as blank canvasses made me realize that I could help them by giving a lot of support and respect. I believe that children are our future.