Philosophy in Education

Nelson Mandela has a quote stating “Education is the most powerful weapon which you
can use to change the world”. We as humans are always growing, changing, and wanting to
explorer beyond whats already known. It comes natural to us wanting to learn more about our
every day lives. I did not always want to know I wanted to pursue a degree in education. I have
really strict parents who would constantly tell and ask me about what I wanted to do when I grow
up. I remember being in the 9th grade and felling the pressure of having to pick something and
not knowing what I would want to do. That same year is when my aunt was diagnosed and
passed away with cancer. It was a really rough year but that same year is when I decided and
announced to my entire family that I wanted to become a nurse. I could remember seeing the
excitement in their faces and feeling accomplished that I was going into the path that was meant
for me. I would be making such great money and my main reason was I wanted to help save
peoples lives. I went to college at UNLV directly after high school. My first year was my most
difficult year. I became really depressed and had no motivation. I would tell myself everyday that
I have to make it to make my family happy. Towards the end of my 1st year I was enrolling my
sister into a new charter school that was opening near our house. At the orientation they were
announcing they were looking for instructional aids. My mom actually is the one who pushed me
to apply and be being a broke college student who just needed a job to buy things I wanted I
applied and I got the job. My plan was to work for a year and then I would look for a different
job. In that first year that I worked at this school and working with this principal changed my
life. I fell in love with teaching and all the magic that came with it. I don’t know how to explain
it, the moment I knew I wanted to be a teacher. I can say it was having to cover for a class and
the feeling I got when I stood there and thought, thought,“what if I had my own classroom. It
could also be the moment that I helped a 2nd grader read. The feeling you get that you taught
that child and now they will go on and want to be something greater in life. It was this same year
that I decided I wanted to change my degree to education. My parents were disappointed and
tried to talk me out of it. I felt it in my heart that this is what I really wanted to do and the feeling
that you're doing the right thing is a felling I couldn’t ignore. I say this part to tell everyone that
you need to do what makes you happy. You should never go into something for the happiness of
others you need to do it for you. The school I decided to work at is a title 1 and is full of behavior
problems. It was very heartbreaking seeing how unfortunate a lot of students were and how a lot
of the reasons are not even there faults. It broke my heart seeing kids come to school from
broken families and all I can think of is I wanted to help. My first thought was if I could have
this child by teaching him to be some successful and showing them that they can to be anything
they want in life. I would be the happiest most content person. I still am helping people like I
wanted to do when I was a nurse but this time I am helping build a Childs mind. A lot of these
children I worked with had no confidence, no attention at home and simply had no motivation.
You can see the big impact a teacher becomes in a child's life. Children can gain confidence, gain
motivation and get that attention from a teacher. Teachers who teach children open up their
minds to new possibilities and in the end they both learn from each other. I have been working at
this charter school for over a year and I am thankful I found this job for I have grown and able to
learn so much for when I become a teacher. Observing how a lot of the population of children
who attend this school are Ell and the majority of them have some kinds of behavioral problem.
In a class of 26 you can say you have a good 6 six who are the ones that are always defiant . A
good 12 who when discipline will straighten back up and the left over 6 who are you angels in
class that are always doing what their told. I have learned that the beginning of the school year
and how you decided to manage your class will affect what kind of year you will have.
Especially with kids who have all these different kinds of backgrounds. They need structure and
they simply just need attention. I know that when teaching, I will need to implement and make
things as interested as I can to keep everyone engaged and learning. It becomes very difficult
when a lot of students are emotional and you want to understand and fix their problems at home.
In the end the best you can do is show them you care and be able to give them that confidence
they need. I fear that now with the power of technology and how that has affected this future
generation it has made it difficult to teach students. Technology and no parenting are two big
factors on why kids are ending up the way they are. The number of teach burn out is increasing
and I understand how teachers can simply give up. Teaching and the power of education is alway
changing and going back to my route towards the beginning. Education can and will change the
world. You can and will change a child life simply by being their teacher and showing them love,
respect and kindness I am very thankful I have this school for I am able to gain a number of
different skills and knowledge. I myself am learning from teachers and I always am learning
something knew. Kids are very unpredictable and are always thinking and doing the unthinkable.
I have a couple more semester to go until I graduate. I am excited to see what my future holds
and all I can say is don’t be afraid to go outside your confront zone, it can take you to the place
you’ve been needing to explore.