My Philosophy of Teaching
I'm starting my student-teaching experience soon, and boy am I pumped! Except, I am unsure what my teaching philosophy is, and I'm afraid someone is going to ask me, and I'm going to draw a blank. I have one because I had to write one 3 years ago in my Classroom Management course, but what did I really understand or know about teaching when my school has not given me any high school teaching exposure or placements until now? My philosophy is not bad, just unfocused, and does not completely embody the person I am now.
Therefore, I'm going to take some time now and see what still resonates and what changed, as I see where I can build upon this semester
Concepts I still resonate with:
My identity as a Sikh: "Sikh" literally means "learner." It is inherent in my identity that I am abundantly curious, and utilizing that strength as a form of advocacy and empowerment for others. As an educator, I am simultaneously a learner.
Constant interaction and discussion: I will have a few solo work days implemented, but I never want to sit behind my desk and teach. My professors have done a lovely job demonstrating the impact and necessity of guided discussions, encouraging us to talk about our interpretations, opinions, and personal experiences without it feeling embarrassing. I want to offer a safe and comfortable environment for thoughtful, respectful, and honest discussions about the text, which means that I share my reactions, anecdotes, and ideas in a way that opens the conversation up. I love Socratic-style seating where everyone can see each other.
Writing as a form of empowerment: I want to show my students that writing is not only a skill, but a form of empowerment. To be able to convey ideas and opinions in writing (and speaking) is a necessity today! So many people know how to utilize their words to influence others, and I hope to instill confidence and tools to help them tap into it. I think I need to work on this myself because I rarely write
Concepts I do not resonate with:
Studying classics as one of the only ways to understand history: I feel like I wrote this in a snobby, "classics are the best way to learn literature," mindset. Like, yes, classics are classics for a reason, but after my last two years of college, I've learned that it is possible to read contemporary novels and learn about the effects of history and its implications today. I wrote this: "I will focus on their personal development as a literature teacher as we study the classics in order to understand the present implications of life today. In order to understand how society is now, we have to understand where it came from," which reading now sounds so cringe. FOR EXAMPLE: Novels like "How the GarcĂa Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez, "Never Let Me Go" by Kazuo Ishiguro, and "Exit West," by Mohsin Hamid are perfect examples of immigrant narrative literature that embody both the past and present!!
New concepts!
Tech-free classroom. Controversial! I believe that students receive enough screentime and do not need to use technology in the classroom. I am honestly okay with reading novels in class and not assigning any reading homework. I am pro-discussions, handwriting, having a journal, holding physical books/paper copies that students can mark up, all of it! I don't really care that this makes me seem archaic and unaccepting of the fact that technology is a reality in our lives. I understand that this is a reality, which is why I want to ensure that my students can function without its grasp and can think! Writing papers? I don't quite know what I want to do with that. I do want my student's to write many 2-3 papers, but I do want more projects that allow them to be creative and demonstrate they understand the material (newsletters, playlists, podcasts, video essays, art project, comics, etc).
I am PRO media literacy! One thing I want to implement in my future ELA classes is teaching students how to present themselves online, identify fake news, read the news critically, and analyze AI-generated media. #antiai
Consistency and structure. I want to be so structured that my students know exactly what to expect without me needing to say it. Students crave structure!! At the moment, I don't mind if that makes me boring because if they have structure, if they know what to expect on a given day, there is more room for them to use their brains to think about the novels, the questions I'm asking, etc. It minimizes the distraction, confusion, and chaos that the world is already in!
I think this is solid. I am proud of myself for writing without any distractions toooooooo!















