ShMaughn Wright

November 14, 2016

Dr. Gold
Teaching Philosophy
Mr. Patrick Reynell, English teach and basketball coach of Goldsboro
High School, was the greatest high school teacher that I have ever had. I
remember him telling me, ShMaughn, you have the intelligence to be great
and there is no doubt in my mind that you are not going to be successful.
Mr. Reynell always pushed me when I started doubting myself. Whenever I
had problems writing papers and I would give up, Mr. Reynell pulled me aside
and talked to me about working with him after school. This meant coming to
his practices to get help on some days. I was a student who was very
intelligent, but my pride use to get me into a lot of trouble with teachers. My
attitude was negative whenever I got upset about something and I had a
hard time controlling it. But Mr. Reynell was disappointed in me when he was
aware of this because I had never acted in that manner with him. He called
me to his class during lunch and told me, ShMaughn, I am not your parent,
but you and I both know that you are better than this. He went on and on
about me bettering myself and over time he helped me control my anger. Mr.
Reynell would always push me to elaborate on any claim that I made about
any subject that we discussed in class. He always had an open ear to what
his students thought and he would explain relatable examples to make his

lesson comprehensible to his 100% black class. I admired the way he taught
his class because his teaching style was extremely unique. He never belittled
us for lacking knowledge, but he educated us like a great leader. This man
helped me seek my true identity, value to life and passionate career. I only
hope to be as great of an Educator as him some day.
True teachers are those who use themselves as bridges over which they
invite their students to cross; then, having facilitated their crossing, joyfully
collapse, encouraging them to create their own- Nikos Kazantzakis
I believe by teaching high school English, I can arouse the brains of the
students to absorb information needed to apply to everyday life. The first
step to teaching effectively is to establish an environment that sparks the
interest of your students. Hanging up poster boards with themes, vocabulary,
assignments, maps and other visual aids will welcome students to a positive,
educational setting. Students should be surrounded by ideas, strategies to
use in classes and art to enlighten the classs energy. Anything that can
enhance the students thinking process, as they are being presented
material, should be within their view.
I believe in providing a student-based classroom, so that my students
do not feel constricted in learning. I want my students to feel that they have
a voice within the classroom, where their learning is the main priority.
Students should have a voice in what they read in English classes and they
should be given options to open their minds about what they prefer to read. I

find that teaching becomes more effective when the students find interest in
the subject being taught. When I was in high school, Reynell would give us a
list of works to choose from and I seemed to be more engaged in the text
when I was given this option. This is the same option I want to provide for my
students, so that I can increase the willingness to learn.
I want to teach at a diverse school to reach the brains and hearts of
students of all cultures, ethnic groups and social statuses. I feel that the
background of a student should not determine the quality of teaching that
the student receives. Black, white, Hispanic and other races should be able
to be unified in one classroom to learn about themselves, as well as each
other. I attended schools that had a poor quality of teachers, and majority of
my peers were considered living in poverty. I felt that we were provided with
low quality teachers because of the money issues. I want to be a high
performing teacher, even if that means teaching a class full of children living
in poverty. Learning should not be limited because of a financial status or
because of someones culture. I want my students to learn about all cultures,
so that they can understand why other students are different from them in a
positive way.
My goal is to be that bridge to students that Mr. Reynell was for other
students, as well as myself. I want to be the bridge that transports them
toward educating themselves, no matter what careers they pursue. Whether
its a factory job worker, doctor, lawyer, teacher, or retail manager,
knowledge is the key to being successful and students should never stop

gaining it. I want to help enhance their critical thinking, prioritizing, selfmanaging, reading and writing skills. Within my teaching strategy, I will
incorporate different teaching methods to ensure that I am reaching out to
all types of learners and that my information is comprehensible. If I can be
that bridge for students to continue to seek knowledge, then my goal will be
met. I want them to utilize their knowledge to become successful and
understand that money is not what makes us rich, it knowledge that
determines our wealth. Even if my students do not want to go to college they
should continue to educate themselves. As an educator, I will establish
leaders and future businessmen and my bridge will be the bridge that
connects to theirs, especially when they are transferring the knowledge that I
have passed to them, to their children or others in general.
I look at myself as a tree when it comes to my life and enlightening
others with information. I am the tree that has gained many layers of
knowledge over the course of my life and my roots quench for more
knowledge as I grow older. My leaves provide the information that I have
gained over the years and when they are ripe and ready, they fall to the
ground, nurturing the soil. Certain leaves carry seeds as they hit the ground.
Those seeds then grow to form more trees that provide and pass on
information as well. This becomes a continuing process and as longs as we
are educating ourselves and implanting the soil with wisdom, we will create
more advocates for learning.