I am just about doing cartwheels -- in my head that is. After doing a class activity on educational philosophy, I was thrilled to learn that we can make up our own!! This is a whole different world for me. All my teaching-life as a preschool teacher I worked for most every theorist in early childhood: Montessori, Waldorf, Regio Emilia (R/E). Then there was those franchise childcare centers where there is no direction at all and are only in it for the money and it was never about the children and their employees.
As en elementary school teacher you have your own ideas set by your own standards on WHAT and HOW a teacher think education should be. I have gazillion ideas, but I don't know where to begin or how to combine them. Combining the above experiences might help inside a public school classroom.
I mentioned how I used a little bit of my Montessori and R/E experiences with a couple of children in Oaks and Roosevelt Elementary. The methods worked. These two philosophies are in total opposite ends of the spectrum: one is 80% teacher-directed, the other is completely student-directed. They both are child-centered, but as an experienced Montessorian, curriculum is already set up throughout the classroom by teachers -- hence, my assumption on the high teacher-directed percentage. In layman's terms, teachers lead the children. The other philosophy, R/E, the children lead the teachers on what goes inside the curriculum.
No matter what those philosophies are, I was restricted to abide by the way they do things. I felt constricted and struggled ALOT with their "language". At the previous childcare center where I worked, the language was very difficult; and I still struggled with it until the very end. For example, here is an example of the type of language that is used on a typical 27 month old (A) who is attacking his peer (B):
Teacher to B: "B, Say 'stop!'" (Teacher sticks her palm outward to signal the sign "stop" toward child A)
Teacher to A: "That is hurting B." (exagerrated facial expression -- to show empathy)
Teacher "pets" B and says: "Are you okay?"
She turns to A while petting B and says: "Be gentle."
This is the very language I used everyday inside a toddler classroom. Although it almost felt scripted and very un-natural, this is a very typical problem-solving approach inside the center. This is part of their philosophy. As the child gets older inside the childcare center, the language becomes a little more sophisticated. If a teacher "grows" or graduates with the children to the next higher-level classroom (this is the R/E philosophy), then it becomes difficult -- if not trained -- to advance to the next "language-level", if you will. Because I was still using language from the previous year, and I was put in the classroom where the children are a bit older, I had a difficult meeting their developing language and cognitive skills.
I did say in the beginning of my employment, and told my co-workers, that my expertise was with the 3-6 year olds, not toddler. However, toward the end of the younger-toddler year (end of Spring 2009), I felt super confident working with the 12-27 month olds. The center, where I worked at, rotated teachers whenever they feel the need to do it every year. I "grew" with these children into the next classroom in the Fall, 2009. I was excited to be with the same group of children (now "older" toddlers), but disheartened at the same time because of the vast experience I gained in the younger toddler group. Thus, begins a NEW CYCLE of learning something that felt completely new and foreign to me.
On top of that, I was team-teaching with someone who was highly experienced in this age group. What I did not understand was why didn't they make her the lead teacher in this classroom and leave me in the other one? They were well aware that I was completely inexperienced in the new age-group of children; and they KNEW that I was very experienced in the younger age group. Ah, well...it eventually led to my forced resignation. Like I said in one of my chapters, it must be budget problems. Or is it, now? C'est la vie.
Anyway, if you want to see more problem-solving "language", look up Eleanor Reynolds Approach. It is interesting and it does work, but be forewarned, it does take tons of time learning this kind of "language" and it can be uncomfortable at the start. And as much as it does take time to learn this language, it takes just as much time for the child to get used to this approach as well. If a teacher likes scripts, this would be the way to go.
Soooo................
Imagine my excitement in my Social Order class when I learned that WE CAN MAKE UP OUR OWN PHILOSOPHY!!!!! Can you tell that I'm excited? It truly felt like I have broken free of the chains. I can be in my own world of teaching rather than follow in the shadow of some theorist who thinks highly of him/herself and set in their own socialistic ways. I'm an idealist. I can no longer fit in a system where things feel un-natural in the way I teach a child. My practicum will be the heart and soul to help me reach within myself a teacher that's ready to bloom.
I truly believe that each child has their own personality, their own characteristic, their own up bringing. How and what I, as a teacher, bring into the classroom may make a difference in their lives AS THEY DEVELOP INTO AN INDIVIDUAL PERSON. This is what I truly believe in in my heart for a very long time. Children are not built to be robots. They learn in their own different ways. They speak and understand language in their own unique individualistic way. It is up to me to meet their academic, social, and physical needs inside a classroom where there is respect for each other as human beings. I also highly believe and respect families in the way they raise their children (as long as it's not against the law!). But I also highly believe that parents/guardians are their children's first and foremost TEACHERS. Not only teachers in an academic sense, but most importantly, ROLE MODELS. Do you know that saying, "Children learn what they see?" It's true. I have three of them. As you have read in previous chapters, they are all academic and socially successful.
Then there's this one child I know who followed in the destructive path of her parent. This is my children's half-sister (father's side) who we haven't been in contact with for well over a year. I heard very sad news most recently, which nearly made me cry: she ended up in juvenile detention (15 years old) for assault and battery on her own mother who has MS (multiple sclerosis).
She felt confused because her mother allowed her to be her "best friend" growing up. For example, her mother taught her the different types of glasses used for different alcoholic beverages: martini glasses are for martinis, shot glasses are for vodka, etc. -- at the young tender age of 7 or 8. She followed her mother's promiscuous life which led this 15 year old to date many, many boys, including an 18 year old man. She has body piercings all over because her mother does it. Her mother's "I'm your best friend" approach confused a young girl when her mother finally told her that she's a parent and she's just a child. 15 years too late.
Although he's been trying for years to fight for custody for her, her father is trying to un-do the damage to this poor child by being intensely much more involved in her life no matter how much her mother is fighting back. I can only do so much as stand on the side lines and watch. :(
I may sound like I'm lecturing parents to do the right thing for their children, but this proves that parents/guardians are important in their children's lives. Not teachers, not the community, not some higher being....parents. Children are like precious jewels that easily break. Until they become adults and become exposed to the real world, they are continuously learning from everyone who influence them, most particularly, their parents.
I'm going to take a deep breath now and contemplate more on my philosophy on teaching. There's so much to think about, so much to learn for our children of the future.
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