Teaching Philosophy

I believe teachers should have a synthetic understanding of content knowledge, proper developmental understanding of students, the willingness to adjust practices consistent with research literature and be an advocate for their students and the school they serve. While I do not believe teachers must have encyclopedic knowledge of the subject they teach, teachers should be comfortable enough with the material to facilitate learning. We all may have had a extremely intelligent math or history professor who would not do well in a middle school classroom. And we have probably had an inspiring middle school teacher who lacked a certain knowledge base.

Secondly, a teacher must be able to take content knowledge and use it in a multitude of ways which are developmentally appropriate, engaging, and applicable to a variety of learning styles and interests.

Next, the science and art of teaching is often updated. New pedagogical strategies, neuro-science research, and studies of motivation are constantly tested and published in scholarly journals. Keeping abreast of such modernization of best practices better prepares teachers to make wise decisions.

Finally, teachers should be an advocate for their students and their school. A child is undergoing several changes (physical, social, emotional and intellectual) while in middle school. It is the teacher's responsibility to be supportive of a child's individual developmental needs.

Most schools are publicly funded. Therefore, I believe they should play a role in the community. Teachers should support and promote their school during its successes and stand up and voice their concerns when a school fails to maximize its affect on students.

I believe in the progressive middle school philosophy of small learning communities, teaching a common core of knowledge by eliminating academic tracking, ensuring success for all students, and engaging families and the community in the education of early adolescents. I believe in blurring the lines between subject-centered daily structures and focus more on collaborative, expeditionary learning that solve problems, explore solutions and tackle issues of significance to early adolescent's interests and development. I believe in providing a safe, engaging and democratic environment where students can freely share ideas, feelings and criticisms.