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Kiley Morgan
Philosophy of Education
Teach me and I will forget, show me and I will learn, involve me and I will understand; a
Chinese proverb that I truly believe is the heart and soul of teaching. When asked what I want
to do, many people tell me that teaching is an easy job. However, I dont believe this is true.
As stated in the proverb, to truly teach someone you have to get them actively engaged in
the learning so they are hungry for more knowledge and dont want to stop learning.
With the thought of keeping children actively engaged, this places certain roles on the teacher
especially in the aspect of the 21st century. The role for educating our youth in the 21st century
is to prepare them for the real world that they will eventually be placed into. Parents or legal
guardians are caring for the students that I will teach. This means that the children I will teach
do not know what it is like to have to live on their own and make an income to provide for
their bills and families. This is the exact purpose of education. Teachers are to teach and
prepare students for what the real world will bring them no matter what age the teacher is
teaching. This is possible by making sure that all of the teachers are following the curriculum
set up by the state and the school. The curriculum is set for a reason because they believe it
will help the students the most in the coming years. We also need to make sure all the students
understand the curriculum on all aspects. For a student with a disability, whether it is
intellectual or physical, we need to make sure they are getting their free and appropriate
public education (FAPE). We can do this by seeing how they are preforming on their tests by
looking at their scores to see if they understand the material. If not, then we start to take the
steps under Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) for them to get an
Individualized Education Program (IEP) if needed or a 504 plan. These are set in place to
make sure that all students are getting the most out of their education. They spend the
majority of their time there, so we, as teachers, need to make sure we are really giving them
what they need in order to be successful.
There is also a role of the teachers themselves. One of the major roles of a teacher is to make
sure their children feel safe and secure not only in the classroom but with the teacher as well.
As a teacher, I want my children to be able to come to me with any problem they are facing. I
want them to feel as if I am family to them and they can tell me anything! Not only do I want
them to come to me, but it is my goal to get to know my students to fullest potential that I can.
I want to be able to tell when something is troubling them so I can help them resolve it.
Another role that I will play is to make sure the students are having responsibilities inside and
outside of the classroom. According to the article 5 Trends in Education in 2014, Wiesen
states as teacher shift to a supporting role in the classroom, they will be transferring more
responsibility to students for their own learning. As a teacher, I want to teach my children.
However, I want my children to be able to learn on their own as well. I want them to be out in
the community and to see something and learn from it. I want them to apply the knowledge
they gain from my class and apply it to their surroundings at home and in the community.
When the child is actively engaged in learning, some if not most of it has to do with the
environment. Having this kind of classroom is key to the childrens learning. To an outside
observer, many classrooms can start to look the same. My classroom will be very warm and
friendly and the children will be welcomed daily. There will be posters and reminders hanging

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on the walls along with a clean and organized room. The children will be able place the proper
materials in the right spot so everyone in the classroom will always know where to find what
they need. However, the room will not be over stimulating for the children. They will know
they are welcomed without overdoing it.
Keeping in mind what role the teacher plays, I also think keeping in mind theorists is key.
Many theorists have different viewpoints on children and their learning. I dont believe in
them all, but I do believe in a few. The biggest theorist to me is Dewey. He believes that
children learn best through experiences. I think that this is key and very accurate because
many children really do learn through experiences. Hey, not just children learn through
experiences! As an adult, I learn so much more if I am actively engaged in the lesson and get
to manipulate things in my hands. There is just something about having that sensory aspect
that really gets me engaged. That being said, looking at children, I realize that they need the
hands on experience more than adults do to really learn. Children have a much shorter
attention span than adults do so to keep them actively engaged enhances their learning. I also
think that this helps them with their ability to learn. If the child is engaged, then they want to
learn more about the topic, which means they are gaining more ability to learn because they
are curious. Alongside Dewey, I also believe that Maslow has valid points about children.
Maslow created the hierarchy of needs that are broken down into five categories. Starting at
the bottom is physiological (breathing, food, water, sleep), safety (security of body, health,
family, morality), love/belonging (friendship, family), esteem (self-esteem, confidence,
respect of others and by others), and topping it off with self-actualization (morality, creativity,
problem solving). These five stages are the foundations of what every human needs starting
with the most basic needs. I think this goes alongside Dewey because you first have to meet
the childs needs before you can get them engaged in the learning. For example, if a child
doesnt feel secure in a certain classroom, they are going to recoil and not be active in the
classroom. This then leads to them not engaging in the lessons being taught to them, which
finally leads to them not preforming to the best of their ability because they are
scared/uncomfortable in their surroundings. How would you feel if you were in a place you
didnt want to be and then you were graded on how well you preformed? Chances are, your
performance level would lower because you are afraid of your surroundings. Now think about
being five or six years old! You dont know what to do because your basic needs arent being
met (as Maslow says they need to be) and you arent engaged in the lesson, which means you
arent learning (like Dewey believes).
Theorists have paved many surfaces in education. One of these paved surfaces is the purpose
of education. Martin Luther King, Jr. had written an article titled The Purpose of Education.
In this article, he talks about what he believes is the purpose of education. After reading his
article, there are many things that I agree with. He believes that education has a two-fold
function to preform in the life of man and in society: the one is utility and the other is
culture. In simple terms, this means that education must prepare man for the goals he sets
for himself in his life. Children as young as four have ideas on what they want to be when
they grow up and although they are always changing, they are setting goals for themselves
even before they know what a goal is. As a teacher, I have to get them to start thinking
about those goals and help to work towards those goals. However, some of the jobs that
children want to be when they grow up may not even exist yet. To help these children, I will
help them achieve the basics that they will need in life no matter what profession they go into

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such as science, math, language arts, and social studies. Although I may not to help a student
for a job that isnt created, I can help them achieve success in their everyday life. Martin
Luther King, Jr. also wrote in his article education must also train one for quick, resolute and
effective thinking. He thinks that education should really teach children to think critically
and be problem solvers. Children are going to be faced with many problems both inside and
outside of the classroom and as a teacher, I want to make sure they know how to approach
their problems and figure them out rationally and to think critically about the problem before
they just make up their mind. I believe that what Martin Luther King, Jr. offers in his article
also can be used for any type of schooling. Although it applies to me and to public school
education, it doesnt just stop there. His ideas can be used for private schooling,
homeschooling, and even cyber schooling. This cannot only be used on different types of
schooling, but this can also be used in schools with very little diversity and a large gap in
diversity. Martin Luther King, Jr.s ideas are not just specific for a certain child, but for any
child in any educational setting.
The purpose of education is something that is pretty consistent throughout the years.
However, there are trends in education that are constantly changing. Teachers always have to
keep up on the new trends. I will keep my skills current by making sure I am reading articles
constantly about education and the research that is being preformed about it. I will also make
sure to attend various conferences about the education field to keep myself updated with what
is going on in the field around me and what could possibly be put into place in my school
district in the future. Finally, I will keep looking for new and exciting ways to assess my
children instead of a test all the time. I will look for many ways to make the assessment less
stressful for them while still producing great results.
By keeping up on the trends of education, the teacher is learning new and different ways to
keep the playing field level for all students in their class. To help all my students achieve
success, I will work closely with each and every one of them. I will get to learn how they
learn best and how they test the best. I will also work with any child that may be an English
Language Learner to help them not only learn the language but gain confidence in speaking
and understanding the language so they can be an active part of the classroom. The overall
goal is to make sure everyones needs are being met and every child is actively engaged in the
classroom.
Many believe that when children are engaged, they get crazy and misbehave. Although this is
not always true, the teacher has to have classroom management. Classroom management is
done in many ways depending on what the children respond to the best and what age the child
is. In a younger classroom setting such as Kindergarten, I could use a sticker chart. Once the
child has received so many stars, they would be given a slip to fill out and place in a jar. That
jar would then be used at the end of the week/month to pull names out. If the childs name
was pulled, they would be able to go to a prize bin and pick a prize. I would also instill selfdiscipline in my classroom. I would hold the children accountable for their actions no matter
what the outcome of their actions cost them. This would be better instilled in a older age
classroom such as 2nd-4th grade.
Finally, when the children are learning they need their parents to help them stay actively
involved in it. To help insure this, I would have volunteer parents to help with duties in the

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classroom such as parties, a helper in the classroom, and field trips. I would also keep in
constant contact with the parents. I would send photos home and via email (with the parents
permission of course!). I would also send home weekly newsletters to the parents to let them
know what is coming up for the week, what we are learning about, and what our specials
would be for the week.
All in all, the teacher plays a huge part in the learning and teaching of a child. The teacher
cannot just simply teach, they have to actively engage the child to get them to remember
what they are learning and what the activity is about. I want to be the teacher that children
remember and I want to be the teacher that always has the children up and engaged in
activities!

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References
FindLaw (n.d.) Discipline and punishment: emerging theories. Retrieved March 30, 2014,
from http://education.findlaw.com/student-conduct-and-discipline/discipline-andpunishment-emerging-theories.html
King Jr., M. L., (1947). The purpose of education. Retrieved April 2, 2014, from http://mlkkpp01.stanford.edu/index.php/encyclopedia/documentsentry/doc_470200_000/
Wiesen, N. (2014, January 7). 5 trends in education in 2014. Retrieved from
http://www.scilearn.com/blog/5-trends-in-education-2014.php