Teaching PhilosophyTeaching is not a job. It's a calling. That statement has been said to me many times, but always holds the same the same amount of truth. It's difficult to put to words what it means to be a teacher. For the year (or more) you spend with your students, they are as if they are your own children. To them you are a teacher, doctor, judge, coach, counselor, and referee (as well as many other hundreds of jobs)! Being a teachers is more than just teaching reading and math, it's teaching children how to become productive members of society and giving them the tools they need to reach whatever dreams they wish to achieve. It also means that we teach children to become life long learners.
As a teacher, it is our job to show students that learning doesn't just happen when you are reading a textbook. It happens when you learn how to create a podcast, when you're creating a comic book, or even when you're producing a movie. Learning comes in all shapes, sizes, and sorts. Learning also goes much further than just the walls of a school or college building. As a teacher or media specialist, we can set an example for our students and our colleagues of being a life long learner. Thanks to technology and social media, life long learning is easier than ever. Whether you like to send out short quips about cool websites or activities in the classroom, or look at pictures of crafts, activities, and projects created by other classes, their is a social network out their for your interests and in the modality that fits your learning style. It's these networks and media that helps create a plethora of information at anyone's finger tips, no matter the desire or interest. However, in the words of Stan Lee, with great power comes great responsibility. While all this information is at our finger tips, it is our responsibility to use the information as it should, and in turn share our own knowledge and expertise with others. It is also of vital importance that we begin to teach these same practices to students. By each passing day it is becoming easier for our students to gain access to social networks as well. If we do not begin teaching students these skills and cyber safety strategies, even as early as elementary school, they will be more likely to abuse the resources the internet provides, or over share personal information. |