Components of My Philosophy
Click the title of each section to view examples for each topic
My Philosophy Statement
I'm not certain that any one statement can completely capture my entire philosophy but this short paper captures a major portion of what I feel a teacher needs to teach and a student needs to learn. This paper is the product of my own personal educational experience, my teacher education, and my teaching practices over the past five years.
Standards for Teachers
Much of the focus of education today is on meeting standards. While not the only way to think about learning, curriculum, and self-improvement, having standards is an important piece of the puzzle. The main purpose of standards for me is to make sure that I continue to meet the expectations of authorities in education, as well as to help guide me in preparing my students for future endeavors. They are a tool I use for the purpose of guiding me in a direction and then reflecting on the outcomes. For the purpose of this Portfolio, I have decided to demonstrate work and practices that align with the National Educational Technology Standards (NETS) for Teachers, which were developed by The International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE).
Proficiency Grading
With the added emphasis on standardized testing, I feel it is necessary to adjust my practice to meet the needs of those impacted the most. While I philosophically disagree with testing as the ultimate assessment of learning, I think it is important to teach students both the proper habits and skills necessary to pass tests. My goal is to keep a rich curriculum in spite of the high-stakes testing. Proficiency grading provides me with the opportunity to teach those skills and maintain quality instruction.
Flipped Classroom
The flipped classroom is one of my favorite new teaching practices! In the world of internet access, students have the opportunity to find information faster and more efficiently than ever...and teachers need to keep up. The idea behind reverse classrooms is to have students take notes and listen to lectures at home for homework in order to provide more access to the teacher for more experiential learning.
High Stakes Testing
Oregon is currently moving in a disturbing direction in education. High Stakes testing has been the focus of my research throughout my Information Technology Education coursework. By looking at the research, I have determined that implementation of testing as a graduation requirement is not only irresponsible but it is also unfair. I believe the research shows strong evidence to suggest that High stakes testing will have a negative impact on Oregon schools.