Educational Credo - Manchester University



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My Professional Teaching Credo

Kristina Faudree

EDUC 111: Introduction to Teaching

Professor Eastman

November 6, 2008

Abstract:

Teaching for me has always been about the students. My goal of teaching is to make sure that the students are getting the best educational opportunity possible. When trying to decide my philosophy for education, I could not pick just one that suited me the best. Existentialism, progressivism, and essentialism are the ones that I most relate to because they focus on the individual and how they think and learn and on the information and abilities students need to know in society. These three philosophical orientations have helped me establish the way I want to teach my future students by making me realize what is important to me.

Throughout my years as a student in public education, I have had the opportunity to work with a number of talented and exceptional teachers who have impacted my life. Because of their role model, I have developed a passion for teaching. None of my teachers ever took their job lightly. They always worked to the point of exhaustion and never hesitated to help me out whenever I needed help. I could always tell that their job was more about the student than about themselves. Knowing how hard the teachers who I had in school worked, has helped me realize the type of teacher I want to be for my students. I want to be the teacher that focuses on the students and their needs rather than focusing on just the curriculum.

Although I have had many favorite teachers, one teacher that I had in junior high school stands out to me the most. His name is Mr. Jansen, and he was my English teacher. He had a unique style of teaching because he brought the curriculum to our level. For one of the lessons he brought in a song that was popular at the time and let us listen to it and evaluate it. We had to write down what was our interpretation of the song. Everyone enjoyed this activity because we were able to relate to it while still learning the process of evaluating the lyrics instead of evaluating poems that might have seem irrelevant to us. Because of Mr. Jansen’s distinctive style of teaching, I was able to see myself as a teacher like him. Students easily related to him, and he was successful in achieving his goal of getting students to not only get a good grade in his class, but to use what he was teaching in so we could use it in the real world. I want to be the type of teacher that enables students to use what they learn in their every day life. Students pay better attention in class when it pertains to them and how they live.

A teacher’s role in the classroom is to be the basis of where students learn about real life experiences and information they need to know to live in an ever-changing society. Without a foundation of certain knowledge, students are left to handle situations on their own. I do not believe it is a teacher’s job to make sure every student knows everything there is to know about a certain subject. A student has to be able to learn on their own. If a teacher spoon feeds a child everything, they will never know how to deal with real life challenges. Aldous Huxley said about students experiencing things for themselves, “experience is not what happens to you. It is what you do with what happens to you.” This quote exemplifies the statement that students will need to go out into the world to really be able to fully learn. I believe that I can achieve this goal by doing activities and work that will relate to topics that are necessary in their lives. By doing certain activities that they enjoy, they will be able to see how it applies to them and want to learn more about the topic.

Creating a learning environment that works well with all students is much more than just creating an atmosphere that is sufficient enough for students. It is creating an environment where the students can feel comfortable to ask questions and participate in class activities. If a student is uncomfortable asking questions because they think their question is not important or is a silly question, then they will never be able to fully grasp their potential. They will have been shortchanged by not being able to know all they can about a subject. All students are very inquisitive, especially on topics they do not know. I know that as a student I always asked questions when I did not understand the topic because that was the only way I could learn. I was able to get help and learn more about the subjects I did not know. I did not ever feel like I could not ask questions because of the environment the teachers created for all students.

It also is important to create a relationship between the teacher and student so the student feels as though they can ask the teacher questions about school and personal topics when they need help. A teacher is a mentor and sometimes can be the only person a student can go to talk to about problems in their lives. I hope that my students will feel comfortable coming up to me and asking me questions. Not only do I help the students by answering their questions, but students asking me for advice or asking questions, educates me as well. I learn something new every day by being in the presence of children because of their innocent thinking that is so different from an adult’s perspective. It is refreshing for adults to be able to listen to children’s perspective that has not been tarnished by what world has thrown at them. As a teacher I want to learn every day from my students because that is what will make teaching worthwhile for me. John Cotton Dana agrees with me by saying, “Who dares to teach must never cease to learn.”

It is my belief that knowledge is only important if it is used in the way it should be; as a way to benefit the society in which we live. Every child has the opportunity to make a difference in society. I think it is the teacher’s job by educating the students on certain matters that affect them. In the classroom I can do activities that will let the students experiment on how to be an advocate in society. Knowing about our society and knowing how to live in our society will help the students prepare for life outside of school; which is what teachers are preparing their students to do. Students have to know how to handle real life situations because “book smarts” are not going to be able to be used in the real world where every situation is different.

My philosophical orientations are a mixture of two orientations with only a small part of another orientation mixed in with my own ideas. The two orientations that I believe are important are existentialism and progressivism. Existentialism and progressivism stress the way of thinking that reflects the individual about the student’s life and their choices. I want my classroom to stress the point that it is a student’s classroom because although it is important to know a variety of subjects, students will not pay attention or participate in class if the subject they are learning about does not pertain to them or is a subject they cannot use in their lives. The last orientation that I believe has a small part of my philosophy is essentialism because I believe it is important to have a classroom that is disciplined but only in the sense that the classroom does not get out of hand. It is essential to have a class that is free but only to a certain degree. I think it can be a “free” class if it does not interfere with the learning environment for other students.

Teaching is not just about teaching students about the curriculum handed to teachers at the beginning of the year; it is about using the curriculum so the students can relate to it and use it in their lives outside of school. When I am teaching students, I want to make sure they realize how important they are to society and how they can make a difference. Every child has a unique quality, and it is my job to make sure I help them figure out that quality. It is my hope that the students in my classroom will grow up to be adults who realize their potential; and as children, will never have to doubt the abilities and talents they can bring to the world. Dr. Seuss expressed the belief of the abilities of children in this statement, “a person’s a person, no matter how small.”

Works Cited

Compassion International. (2000, 2002-2008). Retrieved October 17, 2008.



English Teachers Network. Retrieved October 16, 2008.



Parkay, F. W., Stanford, H. B. (2007). Ideas and Events that have Shaped Education in the United States. Becoming a teacher. (pp. 79-113). Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.

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