Nermin Fialkowski

Dr. Terry Bustillos

ATP 699

Ultimate Benefits of Being an Inspired Educator

Inspired Educator

In terms of being an educator, the focus is on student learning; to educate students on any

set of skills or knowledge through the acquisition of experience, study, and/or instruction

(Learning). As an educator, my goal is to help students develop their reasoning and critical

thinking skills. This Program has provided me with a sense of urgency in which I need to

provide my students with a quality education through the means of becoming an Inspired

Educator. When referencing an Inspired Educator, the focus of student learning through

experience, study, and/or instruction is done so with the intention to allow them to: thrive

socially-emotionally, achieve academically, and contribute positively to their communities

(Acosta-Teller et al., 2016). Inspired Educators “are principled in their practices and intention in

relationship building… [They] are cognizant of how their beliefs, actions, and practivces shape

learner outcomes. They set goals based on self-evalutation and feedback from others that will

improve their practices and contintue professional learning through their career” (Acosta-Teller

et al., 2016).

Benefits of Being an Inspired Educator

By default, being an Inspired Educator builds relationships with students first.

Relationships are the underlying root cause of being able to teach and support student learning.

The benefit of building student relationships is that it creates a pathway for student learning.

Being able to build strong relationships with students provides them with a productive learning
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environment. It is important to know who our students are as individuals, so that we can teach to

them as a whole. Students’ social-emotional needs of being valued and appreciated, need to be

met first so that students can be receptive to the content material. “Mind and emotions are not

separate; emotions, thinking, and learning are all linked” (Jensen, 2005). Having relationships

with students creates buy-in for being productive workers. When we as educators understand

that each student can positivity contribute to class, students will rise to the occasion, because

when we embrace students’ knowledge, they will embrace their learning (TedxTalks, 2015).

The purpose of an Inspired Educator is to enact change. This Program has made me an

agent of change by providing me with a sense of urgency, in which I need to provide my students

with a quality education through the means of becoming an Inspired Educator; by providing my

students with a better alignment of instruction and curriculum to assessment. I hope to echo this

change from my classroom out into my school site and eventually district. As Inspired

Educators, it is our mission is to enact change within our students as well. It is our responsibility

to provide students with an education that allows them to become critical, independent, life-long

learners so that they can provide practical solutions to real-world situations and positively

contribute to their community. The benefit of being an Inspired Educator is to create a cause-

and-effect reaction that begins in the classroom, that leads to the school, which can be taken to

the district, and ultimately enact educational change within our communities.

Application to My Profession

Being hyperaware of Learner Literacy encompasses all other literacies of an Inspired

Educator, which can guarantee success in providing students with a quality education. An

Inspired Educator creates a safe and nurturing environment that is rigorous and cognitively

challenging for all learners by using students’ background and experiences to engage them in the
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learning process. Through the use of ongoing formative assessments an Inspired Educator

adjusts and modifies their instruction to meet the needs of their learners (Acosta-Teller et al.,

2016). But what I identify the most with in Learner Literacy, is that an Inspired Educator

“understands that the ultimate goal of teaching is to create independent [and] life-long learners”

(Acosta-Teller et al., 2016), which is a key component of my personal teaching philosophy.

Enacting change within my classroom is the catalyst needed to produce change within my

school, district, and community. The change is a shift in the paradigm, from teacher to Inspired

Educator; where the Inspired Educator “excels in teaching practices and approaches which

nurture, develop and positively affect learners” (Acosta-Teller et al., 2016). In the end, as

curriculums change, laws change, and standards change, one thing remains constant,

relationships between students and passionate teachers. For these relationships will always be

the foundation of a successful classroom (TedxTalks, 2015).

References

Acosta-Teller, E., Amador-Lankster, C., Anderson, L., Crow, N., Dickenson, P., Elder, D.,

Fabry, D., Gilbert, S., Karell, D., Reynolds, T., & Tolbert, D. (2016). The Inspired

Teacher and Seven Literacies Defined. Abstract retrieved from ATP 600: The Inspired

Educator.

Learning. Dictionary.com. Retrieved from: https://www.dictionary.com/browse/learning

Jensen, E. (2005). Teaching with the Brain in Mind. Alexandria, VA: Association for

Supervision and Curriculum Development

TedxTalks. (2015, October 13). Reimagining Classrooms: Teachers as Learners and Students

as Leaders, Kayla Delzer, TEDxFargo. [Video file]. Retrieved from:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w6vVXmwYvgs