Teaching philosophy

What is my pedagogy?

On several occasions at the beginning of new school years, parents of my new students would ask me to describe my educational pedagogy and I never knew how to reply to that question. Finally, about half way through my career, I started to formulate an answer.

What is my pedagogy? I have two beliefs that I try to adhere to on a daily basis.

My first belief is that we need to keep the classroom atmosphere as fun and engaging for students as possible, without sacrificing the learning environment. I strove to make school, and more specifically my classroom, a place that students wanted to be, a place where they felt comfortable. I wanted them to feel welcome and to have a desire to be in my class. I never wanted my class to be a place that students simply needed to be, based on their schedule. At times we forget to instill curiosity and wonder; we forget that it is our job to provide the “spark”. Too many students throughout the US leave their classes and their school day disappointed and bored. I don’t mean to imply that every moment of every lesson in every class can be filled with edge-of-the-seat engagement, but we need to remember that at its core, science classes should fill young minds with curiosity, wonder, and awe.

My second belief is that we need to build strong personal relationships with our students. I wanted my students to see me laugh and see me cry. I wanted them to see me on my best days and admire how I got through my worst days. I wanted them to know that I would bend over backwards for them, and I strove to show them my highest level of commitment on a daily basis. I strongly believe that we cannot possibly reach a student who does not think that you care for, and will advocate for, them. I am not naive enough to think that I could foster that type of relationship with every one of my students, but what is the alternative to developing strong relationships? If the alternative is simply teaching my subject material, and not trying to know them, I don’t want any part of that approach. As an aside, my approach had an added benefit - I had far fewer discipline problems than many other teachers. When students know that you care, they elevate their behavior and effort.

This pedagogical approach has served me well, and made it possible for me to look back with pride, not only on the career path I chose, but also the manner in which I taught.