Joshua Gonzalez

Philosophy of Education

Education was put into place with the hope of creating a society that was educated

enough contribute back to society. As Oaks and Lipton write, Americans have placed their

hopes for democracy on public schools, as to say that as long as the U.S. has a democracy, the

hope for future is in public education (pg. 4). Schools now, are also supposed to get students

prepared for college or to be ready to enter the workforce immediately after graduation.

Having a few years of experience, working with students, I have recognized that every

student is different, therefore they also learn different. In an article written by Bridget Murray,

she explains that students learn best when they self-regulate but this also helps with the

environment of the classroom. The teacher would try to create lessons based on the students

strongest learning method.

Heather Hackman, in an article, defines social justice as education [that] encourages

students to take an active role in their own education and in order to have this in their

classrooms, a teacher must generate lessons that the students find meaningful. It is important for

students to know what is going on in their community and country, which is important in order to

have a classroom that is socially just.

I believe that teachers should be allowed to teach what they want, without having the

same standards across the board. In an article, 7 Common Core Questions, the author, Leslie

Crawford, questions Common Core predicting that many states will suffer from lower test

scores. Crawford states that, in New York, parents found out that their kids test scores in

English language arts scores dropped by 24.1 points; in math, scores went down 33.8 points.

Although these poor test scores will not affect the students record, it can, however, affect school

funding and threaten some teachers jobs.

 I think that as students get older, they need to learn essential parts of adult life that are not

taught in schools today like: how to pay taxes or write checks. Teachers should push to teach

students about issues around the world and government, so that they are aware of what is going

on outside their little bubble. Literature, science, history and math should be essential parts of the

day because these are very important subjects that are used often in the real world. The way

students need to be taught differs by each individual, so the teaching styles should be modified in

order to get through to the students while highlighting the students learning styles. Teachers

should use various methods: groups, manipulatives, and solo work as well. The creativity of the

students should be just as important as that of the teachers, so arts and open ended projects

should be implemented and used. Drawing, painting, and sewing can help students be creative

while teaching them a skill that is difficult to learn elsewhere.

A characteristic, that is shared by many inspirational teachers, is love for the kids.

Although love can be expressed in numerous ways, these teachers have a bond with their

students that enables comfortable learning. Teaching goes beyond teaching; it is a full time job

that requires dedication to the students so they can feel inspired to learn and grow. Students

change over time, so a good teacher will adapt in order to serve their students so they can go on

with their lives to become a success.

 Works Cited

Crawford, Leslie. (2015). 7 Common Core questions. Retrieved from

http://www.greatschools.org.

Hackman, H. W. Equity and excellence in education: Five essential components for social

justice education. University of Massachusetts.

Murray, Bridget. (2015). Teaching students how to learn. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org.

Oaks, J. & Lipton, M. (2002). Teaching to change the world. Boston: McGraw Hill.