Although I have grown tremendously as an educator over the course of my career, my teaching philosophy has always remained the same. I believe that all children are special and unique individuals who can learn, explore, and grow if they are presented with the activities, resources, and tools that fit their specific and diverse needs. As the teacher, this requires that I take an active role in learning about my students by forming genuine relationships with them. I must investigate a student’s interests, their likes and dislikes, their motivations and frustrations by talking and listening to each child and their parents. This philosophy also requires me to accept the responsibility of assessing each student using a variety of appropriate and authentic assessment tools and then using the collected data to drive my instruction.
I believe that teachers must collaborate effectively with other professionals to gain a complete picture of the student in a variety of situations. Because I believe that multiple professionals can support a student’s success in the classroom, I feel that it is critical that the people who work with the child must be able to work together in an effective manner.
I believe that learning can be fun. I do not believe that learning takes place only in the form of pencils and worksheets. I believe students should be given opportunities to “get their hands dirty” – to dive deep into the rigorous content presented to them. Teachers should serve as the facilitators to student learning. It is our job to guide students as they learn and explore new information. In my own classroom, I demonstrate these personal beliefs by always encouraging my students to dig a little deeper by questioning new content. Each child learns differently, and my classroom is structured in a way that meets those diverse needs. The needs of my students directly drive my instruction. Additionally, the relationships that I have formed with parents allows me to provide consistency between home and school.
I believe that I am an outstanding teacher because I am willing to find new methods to ensure my student’s success. I do not hesitate to think “outside of the box” to meet their needs. I am always ready to work with other educators to best support my students, my parents, my peers, and my administrators as we work together to ensure the success of our students.
- Ms. Chancey
