Teaching Philosophy

Philosophy of Teaching

“A checklist isn’t an education” (Hones & Sullivan-Vance 2005; Lowenstein 2005). Looking back on my time as a student, this has been one of my main takeaways. A student (including myself) can complete all of the assignments, check all of the boxes to get their A, but that does not mean they have learned anything. For me, holding this as a value means remembering that an education goes beyond a list of information and instead builds connections across the disciplines and engages a student’s sense of being so that they have a chance to define the purpose of their education for their career and life. This value aligns my teaching philosophy with a Constructivist approach to education. In turn, my pedagogical approach ought to create opportunities for students to not only to engage with content, but also collaboratively make meaning from the content so they can incorporate it into their existing schema and reconstruct their understanding of the world (Vygotsky, 1978; Deane et al., 2015; Alvermann, Gillis, & Phelps, 2013). This approach is especially valuable in my subject of English Language Arts as our standards and curriculum focus primarily on skills that students should develop in order to interpret texts themselves, rather than on specific texts they ought to know (Deane et al., 2015).

To help achieve these ends, my classroom environment is focused on building a space where students are comfortable to explore new ideas (increasing motivation) and have room to work in groups. This creates more of a facilitator role for me where I help students as they explore the topic for themselves or with one another (Knudson, 1995). I might do this by guiding them in their research or helping them see areas of the text they missed, providing guidance as they develop their knowledge based on what they already know, but a lot of the responsibility for learning lives with them (Applefield et al., 2001). Environmentally, I try to keep my lights low, using more warm light and music to create a welcoming atmosphere (Applefield et al., 2001). Likewise, I have my desks set up in groups of four, which become natural Book Club or collaboration groups for our regular projects (Knudson, 1995; Applefield et al., 2001).

While students sometimes get into the attitude that they need to check the assignments off their list, my hope is that our assignments encourage collaboration and reflection. Indeed, on some level my goal is for students to feel like they are not even completing academic assignments, but rather expressing themselves and their thoughts as social and creative thinkers (Milbrandt et al., 2004; Applefield et al., 2001). Ultimately, my goal is that students are able to move beyond the framework of assignments so they can begin questioning texts themselves, becoming emerging lifelong learners and lifelong readers or writers as they prepare for graduation.

The teaching strategies that I use within my Constructivist framework focus on giving students the skills to approach a literary text or write an argument or narrative passage before giving them the space to digest the text themselves or in groups and incorporate it into their schema (Castro, 2021; Daniels, 2002; Fisher 2011). For instance, in my unit for literary texts, I demonstrate skills for identifying themes or characterization with a mentor text on the board. Then I give students a set of questions they can ask with a Literature Circle/Book Club in order to analyze an Independent Reading book. The questions focus on how they are interpreting the text and their ability to support their interpretations with evidence rather than finding a “correct” answer. I value this strategy because it emphasizes the student’s role in making meaning from their reading.

Additionally, I have a focus on building background knowledge before we read a text together. Because I place a heavy emphasis on the value of each student’s mental schema and how they will reconstruct it through the process of reading, it is important that they have enough relevant information within their schema before beginning a text so that they are able to interpret the text and successfully use it to rethink their understanding of the world (Alvermann et al., 2013; Echevarri et al., 2016). Before reading Born a Crime with my senior class, we do a web quest or watch some videos that introduce us to South Africa during Apartheid, which prepares them for the experiences Trevor Noah is going to share during his memoir. Likewise, we might watch some of Trevor Noah’s videos themselves so that students can build a personal connection to the author, increasing their motivation for engaging in the learning process (Alvermann et al., 2013).

Philosophy of Classroom Management

When it comes to my students, I believe they are all capable of great things if they put their minds to it, a reflection of my humanistic belief in my students and the idea that education should be a chance for them to define how the material relates to their understanding of the world. At the same time, I see the need for strong custodial safety nets because students often face many distractions to get in the way of them meeting their full potential (Manning & Bucher, 2013). Emerging from these beliefs, my Classroom Management style emphasizes an Ecological Approach with a more student-centered Self-Regulating element.

Ecological Approaches focus on how the environment of a classroom impacts student behavior, including how the teacher can manipulate the environment to encourage different student responses (Manning & Bucher, 2013). For Kounin et al. (1970), teachers can use management procedures to keep students focused on the task at hand and remain aware of their surroundings. For my classroom environment, digital devices are a common distractor. Moreover, the ability to Google an answer encourages students to become focused on the “right” answer in a text, rather than how they can fit a text into their understanding of the world. As such, limiting students’ access to technology becomes a core way I can manipulate my environment by giving students physical worksheets and texts to cut out distractions. By removing the need for those devices, students are encouraged to explore the text themselves and find their own meaning within it, but this only becomes possible based on how I control the environment around my students.

The ecological approach also innately supports the learning of all of my students because each of them experiences the same environmental cues to guide their work. Other environmental cues include the placement of my desks in the classroom. I leave my desks in groups of four, which offers the cue that students should work in groups with one another to complete their classwork. Occasionally, I have alternate activities and will move the desks to reflect the new mode of learning. For instance, there are days when students give presentations, and I move the desks to face towards the screen, almost like a stage. This offers the cue that the speaker deserves their attention and we are not working in groups on those days. The shift in the environment encourages students to think about their learning activity that day differently, while also discouraging side conversations and encouraging good audience behavior. The same notion of desk layout applies to other learning activities, like testing or class gallery walks (which sometimes move into a different room so there is more space). While I have not done much with this so far, I want to explore other spaces in the school, like the media center, that offer complete environmental changes and put students into new mindsets about the learning we are focused upon that day.

While the Ecological Approach emphasizes my sense that students need environmental encouragement to reach their full potential, I also reserve space for a Self-Regulating element where students can voice their own needs for an environmentally supportive classroom. Self-Regulating approaches focus on supporting the intrinsic motivation students have for learning through self-awareness of where they are at in the learning process (Manning & Bucher, 2013). This approach fits within my Constructivist framework because it encourages students to pay attention to their specific schemata and how the material relates to their specific understanding of the world. Within the Self-Regulating Model, the student takes ownership of their learning process to ask if they have gained the necessary skills or even what skills they should use in a particular situation (Manning & Bucher, 2013). These are similar questions I would expect students to ask as they incorporate new skills or material into their schema. In conjunction with the Ecological Approach, they are also skills I might include in a worksheet for students to use as they practice their skills. These moments give students an opportunity to make choices about how they want to proceed with their learning environment, whether they need to explore further examples or if they have reached their understanding and can take advantage of free time.

I have a high degree of belief in my students and their potential, which drives my respect for them and the learning process, believing every student can succeed in my class if given the right supports. Practically, however, I have seen how many face an onslaught of distractions in the structure of the world, so much of my Classroom Management Philosophy is focused on creating an environment where students can focus on their work and build long-lasting habits.

References

Alvermann, D. E., Gillis, V. R., & Phelps, S. E. (2013). Content Area Reading and Literacy: Succeeding in Today’s Diverse Classrooms (7th ed.). Pearson.

Castro, M. N. T. (2021). Literature Circle: A Strategy in Improving Critical Thinking Skills. International Journal of English Language Studies, 3(2), 65–84.

Daniels, H. (2002). Literature Circles: Voice and Choice in Book Clubs and Reading Groups. Stenhouse Publishers.

Deane, P., Sabanti, J., Feng, G., Sparks, J., Song, Y., Fowles, M., O’Reilly, T., Jueds, K., Krovetz, R. & Foley, C. (2015). Key Practices in the English Language Arts (ELA): Linking Theory, Assessment, and Instruction. ETS Research Report Series (2), 1–29.

Echevarria, J., Vogt, M, & Short, D. (2016). Building Background Knowledge. In Making Content Comprehensible for English Learners: The SIOP Model (pp. 70–101). Allyn and Bacon.

Fisher, A. (2011). Critical Thinking: An Introduction. Cambridge University Press.

Kounin, J. S., Gump, P. V., & Ryan III, J. J. (1970). Explorations in Classroom Management. In M. B. Miles and W. W. Charters Jr., Learning in Social Settings. Allyn and Bacon.

Manning, M. L. & Butcher, K. T. (2013). Classroom Management: Models, Applications, and Cases (3rd ed.). Pearson.

Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind and Society: The Development of Higher Mental Processes. Harvard University Press.

Procedures and Routines

Following a Constructivist approach to learning, my classroom management focuses on creating an environment where students have environmental cues that signal what they are supposed to do at that moment. While students are learning in connection with one another, our procedures guide how we interact with one another in our space so that learning can occur (Applefield et al., 2001). In line with an Ecological approach to classroom management, they should know what procedures to follow based on the cues around them (Manning & Bucher, 2013; Kounin et al., 1970). While environmental cues are important and reflect my responsibilities as a teacher, because I have a Constructivist approach to learning, students should be at the center of the learning process with the freedom to shape how our material intersects with their understanding of the world. In response to that freedom, they also need to demonstrate skills in self-regulation, so my procedures should also focus on fostering those skills and offering reminders about what it looks like to take ownership of their learning process (McIntosh et. al, 2004). Together, the environmental cues and self-regulatory reminders help students understand expectations while also being involved in shaping their practical implementation, two characteristics of a well-managed classroom (Wong, 2007).

To facilitate the Constructivist approach through ecological cues, my classroom is set up with the goal of creating space for students to feel comfortable and collaborate together. I have my desks set up in groups of four so that students are readily in place to have group conversations or collaborate on projects. Likewise, I keep my lights low and play soft music in the background that creates a more relaxing environment where students do not feel as restricted in their movements. In addition, I focus on limiting the use of technological devices as much as possible by giving them physical worksheets and readings. While this includes students’ personal devices, it also includes the school-supplied chromebooks. While there are times it is important to incorporate technology to prepare students for the modern world, I also believe part of teaching self regulation and digital citizenship is helping students see that technology is not necessary for every task and that it is important to take a break (Hummel, 2024). Part of this includes helping students see the “why” behind our use of technology and how in some instances technology becomes a barrier to learning if we do not understand why we are using it (Adams, 2021; Wong, 2007). Both of these values tie back to my Ecological and Self-Regulating approaches. By offering physical cues through the arrangement of my desks and the use of music, students are environmentally geared towards collaboration, a key element of the Constructivist model for learning. Likewise, by offering physical worksheets or other non-digital assignments, students have an environmental cue that prompts the self-regulation of technology use and promotes digital citizenship. Because I want to emphasize for students their ability to think through texts and create meaning for themselves as part of the learning process, creating physical-digital space from Google or AI also supports my Constructivist approach to learning.

Transitions between classes and between learning activities offer the greatest procedural load for students because there is a lot happening all at once (McIntosh et. al, 2004). Teaching at a high school, students have their most freedom as they transition between classes. Students may be transitioning between teachers with different teaching styles, so setting the tone as they enter or leave my class is important. I exercise my responsibilities to foster this shift through a “Threshold” strategy, where I position myself at the door when possible to welcome students, have conversations about missing work, or wish them a good day (Lemov, 2021; Rademacher et al., 1998). This helps to set the comforting tone of my classroom if that is different from where students are coming from. Once they enter the room, there is a slide projected on the board that gives warm up directions, either vocabulary or review from the day before so that instruction can begin as I take attendance or help students who have been absent (Wong, 2007). Transitions during class as we move from one learning activity to another, including moving from the warm up to that day's task, are signaled with changes in the environment. Because I use music to set a warm environment for my students, any transition is accompanied with a pause in the music as I step up to my podium. This signals for students that I am about to speak and give directions. Because the classroom becomes naturally quieter without the music playing, students become more conscious of their own noise. Likewise, because I only go to my podium when I am giving directions or teaching a lesson, it is a good environmental cue for students to recognize that we are about to start something new (Wong, 2007). As a class, I discussed this as a type of transition we will use, and while we did not practice it this semester, that is one of my goals in the future to help cement that as a transitional cue for my students (McIntosh et. al, 2004).

To monitor behavior and offer gentle reminders so students are able to self-regulate, I use a method of active supervision. This involves walking around the room, scanning the progress students are making on their assignments, and checking in on questions they may have or their understanding of the topic (McIntosh et. al, 2004). This gives students the freedom to work through the material and develop their own ideas, while also providing as needed/just-in-time support as they engage with complex readings. In terms of bathroom passes, we have school-wide policies about one pass per classroom that students are able to sign out. We discussed the procedure for signing out and signing in a pass on the first day of school, and it is emphasized in all of their classes as teachers are expected to have the same procedure.

For students who are absent, there is also a clear set of procedures so that they are able to keep up with our progress while they are out. Each morning, I post an announcement on our eClass page that details the lesson for the day, what resources (notes, readings, or worksheets) students will need to complete the lesson, and if there is any work they need to complete at home. Since students have access to their eClass page at home, the expectation when students are absent is to check the eClass page while they are out so that they can complete anything we worked on or reach out via email with questions. This method is especially effective because all students have access to the eClass page, so they are able to use that to find any resources we are using in class that day if they are in the room as well. In other words, while it focuses on supporting absent students, it is also incorporated as a part of my standard classroom routine. This helps students utilize that procedure while absent because both emphasize their responsibility to find the resources they need in the same place (Wong, 2007). When students return, they can ask questions or receive anything physical they need during the warm up as students are reviewing from the previous day or working on their vocabulary.

Coming out of a Constructivist approach to teaching, many of my procedures emphasize student responsibility for their learning while creating space for me as a facilitator. Through ecological cues, students know what type of behavior they should be demonstrating at certain times, whether that is being quiet so I can offer directions, engaging with their group members, or focusing on their reading. These cues are my responsibility as an educator so that students have a space where they can explore complex topics and develop their understanding of the world. At the same time, following those cues requires some self-regulation and responsibility on their part. I can support students in that endeavor by being a continual presence in the space, offering redirection, answering questions, or having conversations with them (both academic and personal) to remind them of their role in shaping their educational experience.

References

Adams, R. M. (2021). Defining Digital Pedagogy in Theological Libraries. In C. B. Anderson (Ed.), Digital Humanities and Libraries and Archives in Religious Studies: An Introduction (pp. 111–21). De Gruyter.

Hummel, B. (2024, April 2). What is Digital Citizenship & How Do You Teach It?. iCEV. https://www.icevonline.com/blog/what-is-digital-citizenship

Kounin, J. S., Gump, P. V., & Ryan III, J. J. (1970). Explorations in Classroom Management. In M. B. Miles and W. W. Charters Jr., Learning in Social Settings. Allyn and Bacon.

Lemov, D. (2021). Teach Like a Champion: 63 Techniques that Put Students on the Path to College (3rd ed.). Jossey-Bass.

Manning, M. L. & Butcher, K. T. (2013). Classroom Management: Models, Applications, and Cases (3rd ed.). Pearson.

McIntosh, K., Herman, K., Sanford, A., McGraw, K., & Florence, K. (2004). Teaching Transitions: Techniques for Promoting Success Between Lessons. Teaching Exceptional Children, 37(1), 32–38.

Rademacher, J. A., Callahan, K., & Pederson-Seelye, V. A. (1998). How Do Your Classroom Rules Measure Up?: Guidelines for Developing an Effective Rule Management Routine. Intervention in School and Clinic, 33(5), 284–89.

Wong, H. K. (2007). The Well-Managed Classroom. Excerpt from The First Days of School.

Rules and Rationale

My general philosophy of teaching is defined by the idea that “a checklist isn’t an education” (Hones & Sullivan-Vance 2005; Lowenstein 2005). For me, this means that students in my class should have a chance to not only complete assignments (check things off a list) but also make meaning from the content by putting it in dialogue with their other courses or with context from their everyday lives. In other words, following a Constructivist and Self-Regulatory approach, learning in my classroom should help expand how students see themselves and their place in the world (Vygotsky, 1978; Deane et al., 2015; Alvermann et al., 2013). In turn, my instruction focuses on building skills for students or creating space for them to build connections with each other or background information I introduce as part of our readings. My hope is that this prepares students as professionals who consistently pose questions of their surroundings and seek out opportunities for reading or writing as a means of expanding their sense of self.

Within this context, rules should be presented to students as part of the process of creating a social contract or a just society. Part of Marzano et al.’s (2003) argument about the importance of rules in the classroom is that rules are a part of any functioning society, and students will encounter rules no matter where they are in life. Presenting rules in this light emphasizes that they are not just being applied to students because they are students, but because that is part of successful culture. If learning in my class focuses on helping students build connections with their real life and preparing them to question their surroundings, then demonstrating that connection to the real world becomes a way of modeling educational expectations in my classroom. At the same time, I can begin offering students that agency and ability to participate in a cultural moment by releasing control for students to co-create or further define the rules for our classroom (Altor & Haydon, 2017; Marzano et al., 2003). Such an approach acknowledges their place on the cusp of entering the adult world and the expectation that they will soon shape the rules that govern our society through voting or public service. Preparing them for that world and helping them build connections to that world can begin with how they choose to shape the environment of our classroom.

Where I teach, there are school-wide expectations that teachers use as a framework for building their rules. Since we have a lion mascot, those school-wide expectations follow the acronym ROAR: Respectful, Open-Minded, Accountable, and Reflective. Within that framework, I use the following rules for my classroom:

Respectful

• Students will show respect by putting electronic devices away while their peers or teacher is sharing.

• Students will show respect by returning with the bathroom pass in a timely manner.

Open-Minded

• Students will be open-minded by critically considering feedback to make a plan on how to get better.

Accountable

• Students will be accountable by contributing during group activities so we can learn and grow together.

Reflective

• Students will be reflective by valuing the process of learning, not just the product.

All five of my rules reflect my Constructivist approach to education, focusing on creating environments where students can expand their sense of self through the learning process and can prepare themselves for a lifetime of learning in a real-world context. In terms of creating a social contract for our classroom, those goals translate into helping students consider the process of learning and preparing them to be functional members of adult society. This starts with the values of Respect, Open-Mindedness, Accountability, and Reflectiveness that my school has identified as priorities for our students.

For students to consider their process of learning and what works for them, they need to be both open-minded and reflective about that process. In my Language Arts classroom, the key moments where students struggle with those values are related to receiving feedback on their writing, listening to new stories, or trying to skip the learning process through AI. Because students can be more grade-oriented, they sometimes overlook the feedback provided on assignments or decide to use an AI to get the grade they want. As a response, rather than banning the use of AI or switching how I provide grades, my rules work on changing students’ attitudes about the actual process of learning. By valuing the process in addition to the product and emphasizing the value of feedback, my rules work against those common issues while providing a positive and productive alternative that builds good learning habits for my students (Rademacher et al., 1998; Marzano et al., 2003; Altor & Haydon, 2017).

For students to use their education as a means of becoming functional members of society, it is important to develop values of respect and accountability. Because class rules are precursors and preparation for the social contract of the real world, I focus not only on expected behaviors but also how those behaviors impact themselves or others in the classroom (Marzano et al., 2003; Altor & Haydon, 2017). For instance, students should return from the bathroom in a timely manner, not because I want them listening to me in the classroom (although that is important), but because other students may need the bathroom pass as well. Likewise, students should check our course website for missing work if they are absent because that helps reduce their stress when they return to school and there is less work for them to catch up on. Both of these rules reflect realities from the real world when students may have to complete a task while they are out of work by checking in online or where others will rely on them to complete things in a timely manner. Placing the emphasis on the outcome of their behavior frames these rules as part of what we do to have a functioning society rather than arbitrary rules I decided to impose on them. They also help students take responsibility for their actions in a learning environment, beginning to build that habit for when they will face similar situations as lifelong learners in the real world.

Rewards and Consequences

Important to my understanding of rewards and consequences is the idea that those should be a direct response to the rule that has been broken (Altor & Haydon, 2017). For instance, a break in a cell phone rule should have a consequence based on cell phone usage. This aligns with the Constructivist and social contract approach to say that when there is a breach in the social contract, there are consequences. Additionally, when people follow the social contract, things run more smoothly. As part of enforcing my rules, the immediate consequence is a warning and the immediate reward is praise or a good grade (Marzano et al., 2003). For continued issues, I will have private conversations with students, reach out to parents, and ultimately involve administration if it becomes a larger problem.

To give a sense of the types of rewards and consequences related to my specific rules, I have included a chart below:

Because many of my rules focus on providing positive examples of what it looks like to be a lifelong learner, the rewards and consequences become reflected in their performance on assignments. As a characteristic example, critically engaging with feedback is likely to improve their  grade on the next assignment or give them a better sense of what they are struggling with and will be reflected in their grade. Failing to do this will have a consequence of repeating the same errors on assignments. While social examples, like using one’s phone when they are not supposed to or taking too long with the bathroom pass, have more concrete consequences, their rewards are more rooted in social praise from the teacher and especially from classmates. Their peers are more appreciative and less upset with them if they return quickly with the bathroom pass because usually more than one person has to go during a single class period. These are direct rewards and consequences to the rules, even though they are not the traditional or tangible rewards and punishments one might expect. Within the framework of Constructivist learning and rules as a social contract, the impact of breaking a rule is that part of the social contract comes undone and the classroom does not work as effectively for students. In turn, they are less likely to have a good social experience or engage with the material in as meaningful of a way. In itself, this is one of the benefits of Constructivist and social contract thinking around rules because they play into natural desires to earn the respect of our peers and have meaningful experiences (Cui & Wang, 2024). Within my Constructivist framework, these become direct rewards and consequences to how students engage with the rules. When students follow expectations, they have a more enjoyable learning experience, their learning flourishes, and their peers are more likely to respect them. A chief disadvantage of this approach to rewards and consequences is that it may not act as a strong enough motivator for students who are not focused on their grades or on building peer contact. For instance, if a student is not interested in earning above a C in the class, they have less motivation for critically engaging with feedback that can bring their grade to a B. Part of the social contract and Constructivist framework, however, is that students are allowed to have that liberty at some point.

The rules and associated rewards and consequences for my classroom predominantly focus on helping students recognize their intrinsic motivators for their behavior, whether that is through learning more or building positive social relationships. Drawing attention to those intrinsic motivators prepares students to use those same motivators when they leave the classroom and may no longer have as clearly defined extrinsic motivators (like grades) to guide their learning or behavior. In that sense, my rules resemble and prepare students for the social contracts that guide our movements in everyday life. Allowing students to take part in developing this social contract for my classroom emphasizes their role in maintaining a just society where it is possible to be a lifelong learner. At the same time, it takes the deemphasizes the notion that I have arbitrary decided what rules to implement and instead connects those rules with long-term outcomes for student success.

References

Altor, P. & Haydon, T. (2017). Characteristics of Effective Classroom Rules: A Review of the Literature. Teacher Education and Special Education, 40(2), 114–27.

Alvermann, D. E., Gillis, V. R., & Phelps, S. E. (2013). Content Area Reading and Literacy: Succeeding in Today’s Diverse Classrooms (7th ed.). Pearson.

Cui, T. & Wang, J. (2024). Empowering Active Learning: A Social Annotation Tool for Improving Student Engagement. British Journal of Educational Technology, 55(2), 712–30.

Deane, P., Sabanti, J., Feng, G., Sparks, J., Song, Y., Fowles, M., O’Reilly, T., Jueds, K., Krovetz, R. & Foley, C. (2015). Key Practices in the English Language Arts (ELA): Linking Theory, Assessment, and Instruction. ETS Research Report Series (2), 1–29.

Marzano, R., Marzano, J., & Pickering, D. (2003). Classroom Management that Works: Research-Based Strategies for Every Teacher. Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development.

Rademacher, J. A., Callahan, K., & Pederson-Seelye, V. A. (1998). How Do Your Classroom Rules Measure Up?: Guidelines for Developing an Effective Rule Management Routine. Intervention in School and Clinic, 33(5), 284–89.

Vygotsky, L. S. (1978). Mind and Society: The Development of Higher Mental Processes. Harvard University Press.