Diego Perez

Prof. Robert Wolfe

ETEC 424

6/9/2019

Philosophy of Teaching (Draft)

The greek writer Nikos Kazantzakis once said, “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 to create their own.” I read this quote and it really

spoke to me because as a future teacher, one of the things I wish to instill in my students is this

idea of learning to be yourself and develop your own ideas and opinions about all things.

Growing up and as I went through school, I always felt that my teachers tried to push a basic,

narrow minded curriculum. There was never any motivation for us students to be creative or

think beyond the box. I think that within the classroom and in education as a whole, it is

important to teach students to be themselves and to allow them to develop their own identities

as they become educated. A good teacher should instill passion in their students, creativity and

independence. I feel that without these components in the classroom, the education becomes

somewhat dull and unsubstantial.

I have not had much teaching experience just yet. I hope to enter into my student

teaching internship semester soon. However in the little teaching experience that I have had,

one of the things that I noticed when instructing kids is the importance of allowing them to do

things independently. For example, I had a student once who had a difficult time writing a paper.

He did not know where to even begin his writing. I could have sat there and wrote out an

example for him and have him mirror it, but that would just be him rewriting what I had already

done. Instead I taught him to begin by brainstorming his ideas and coming up with an outline for

the paper. The student very quickly picked up the method I showed him and when I came back
around to check his progress, he had most of the paper finished already. With this experience I

saw firsthand the importance of allowing students to not only be independent but also to let

them find themselves and what suits them best to be successful in their academics.

In looking at all of these components of good teaching, I think that showing and instilling

passion is a key thing as well. This is actually something that I noticed a lack of when I was

growing up in school. My teachers had very little passion for what they were doing and it

affected us students very negatively. We lost interest in the subject and detested the material

because the instructor showed no passion for it nor a willingness to teach us effectively. As a

future educator I want to be the exact opposite of that. I want my students to see that I am truly

passionate about what I am teaching and through that they themselves will be motivated to

succeed in the academics. This will also help in motivating them to pursue their own interests.

The way to show this passion the best is through the teaching itself. If I were to sit and give a

long dull talk about the canterbury tales, for example, the students are going to more than likely

sleep throughout the whole thing. But if I can be creative with it and teach them in a way that

engages them precisely, they will see that the material is interesting and it is worth it to learn

and participate. My passion for the material will hopefully allow them to be inspired to want to

learn and to succeed in the long run.

Along with passion and independence I also think that creativity is important in the

classroom. It enhances the education as a whole and motivates students to think outside the

box. They find themselves when they are creative and they find what it is they are most

passionate about. I think an effective means of pushing for creativity in teaching is to allow the

students multiple outlets for learning and developing ideas. Every student has their own

particular method by which they like to engage in the learning material. Allowing them multiple

ways of accessing this can help them find what suits best and as I mentioned it pushes for them

to be creative. For example, if I have a class where I am teaching how to write an essay, there

are many ways in which I can take the approach to teaching it. If I sit and teach them one
method, it will not resonate with everyone the same way. However if I give the students multiple

ways in which they can write the paper and allow them to choose whatever suits them best, they

will accommodate better and will be motivated to get creative with it as well. I believe that these

components of passion, creativity and independence are essential for a good teacher and as I

look towards my future as an educator I greatly desire to instill them in the classroom.