Education is a Building Block for life
I have always known I wanted to be a teacher because I love working with children and want to make a difference in children’s lives. In the period of elementary school, children’s minds are very flexible; this is the most important time for a child’s mind to be stimulated and enriched and as a teacher my goal is to enhance their cognitive development. Education is not a place for teachers to take charge and drill things into a child’s mind, it is place where interaction can occur between a teacher and student; where both individuals learn from each other, not just in one direction. As a teacher, I want to learn from my students, and from my own mistakes, in order to continually improve in my own teaching. There is always room for improvement when influencing children’s minds, and I plan on always striving to continue to learn new things in order to improve my own students’ learning.
I believe learning should not be something that is forced upon the student. If a child does not want to learn, then sometimes they will shut down in the classroom. If they have no desire to further their education and learning, then they will not be able to reach their full potential. My goal as a teacher is to have all of my students want to succeed and feel like they have succeeded. Because of this, I want to teach my students the importance of education and let them find out for themselves that they want to learn, which will prepare them for their own future. Not only do I want to teach them required material, but I also want to teach them how to learn because I think that is one of the most important lessons a person can gain. Learning should be enjoyable and children should want to come to school to find out the new things they will experience each day. I want to be looked at as not only a teacher, but also as a mentor who is pushing students to be the best they can be.
I want to be approachable and available to listen to each child. I plan on figuring out where each child’s level of learning is; by knowing their background this will aid in their ability to reach their highest potential. I believe students should not be judged as a group by only looking at their scores. Students should be evaluated on their own personal growth and participation in the class. In order to do this a teacher must be familiar with every student and their capabilities and make sure that these students are meeting their individual goals.
I want to have a classroom that children feel comfortable in and where they want to learn. Modeling should be used in the classroom to show children what is expected of them. In addition, I want to be a role model to all of my students. I want the students to not only respect me, but also respect each other as well as themselves. I do not want anyone to feel smarter than anyone else because everyone has his or her own specialty. This goes along with Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligence, which states that intelligence cannot be measured solely by test scores. As a teacher I plan on addressing the variety of types of intelligence through my teaching and in turn encourage the students to succeed through different outlets.
I hope that by being a teacher in today’s society I can be an influential teacher who goes beyond the expectations of standards and really relate to, care about, and impact each individual student’s life. Each child’s world is constantly changing and it is a teacher’s job to guide a child’s learning and provide stability for him or her. A teacher should not tell the student what to do in life, but should help them figure out their own desires and passions and lead them down the path that they will be happy. I want to touch every one of my student’s lives and teach them lessons that they can use throughout their educational and professional experiences. I hope that my classroom will give me tools that I can build upon each year and allow me to open my mind to new experiences which will help me to become the best teacher that I can be.