Education is a world unto itself. I believe learning should be an experience filled with wonder and fun for both the teacher and the students. Learning is like going on an exploration in a way that you don’t know what you will find until you actually find it. The instructor should be a tour guide of sorts, leading the children in the right direction. The students are the explorers and should feel the sense of pride that comes with finding the “treasure”. Just as in a new land, different sights need to be used and care must be taken that no child feels lost with material. The use of visual aids, auditory and hands on learning are something that I can use in the lessons I teach.
My job as an instructor means that it is my responsibility to make sure each child is learning to the best of their abilities. I must keep myself well informed, not only with the goings on outside of the classroom, but my students as well. It falls to me to make the experience of learning as fun and simple as possible. As Eisenstein once said, “If you can’t teach it, you don’t understand it well enough.” Keeping myself up to date will be an advantage for both the students and myself.
My plan is to make my classroom a place where individualism is embraced. My students will feel welcomed and safe, as well as encouraged and important. I will use a child’s strengths to help encourage their weaknesses and teach all the children the beauty of diversity. Rules will be enforced, as will punishments for disobeying.
The students will have expectations placed on them. Class work and all assignments will be expected to be done on time and to the best of the abilities. If there is a problem among the pupils, I will expect to be notified if I do not catch any warning signs. If a child feels they are not grasping the learning objectives, it is their job to notify me if I cannot pick up on.
Parents will play a big role in the way I run my classroom. I will send out newsletters to let the parents know what we will be covering that week or lesson period. I will include the dates for homework, tests and any other projects. Progress reports will be issued to each of my student’s mid-semester or grading period, to let both them and their parents know how they are progressing and what needs should be addressed. Phone calls, emails and meetings will also come into play as both the parents and I see fit. When all these factors come into play, a child really has few choices but to grow and thrive. As an educator I feel this is the overall goal of my job.