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by Mridley

Jan 25, 2017

I am a student that is going to become a techer. I have a couple of questions for you. What is the philosophy that you institute in your classroom

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Oldie but goodie Sadly, it's whatever philosophy the district is embracing this year. Gone are the days of "doing your own thing" and now we must march in step to the the tune of the district.

On 1/25/17, Mridley wrote: > I am a student that is going to become a techer. I have a > couple of questions for you. What is the philosophy that you...See More

Jan 25, 2017

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theinsinuator On 1/25/17, Oldie but goodie wrote: > Sadly, it's whatever philosophy the district is embracing this > year. Gone are the days of "doing your own thing" and now we > must march in step to the the tune of the district.

Mridley, you can rightly ignore the empty, bitter drivel posted by the sadsack above. If by "philos...See MoreOn 1/25/17, Oldie but goodie wrote: > Sadly, it's whatever philosophy the district is embracing this > year. Gone are the days of "doing your own thing" and now we > must march in step to the the tune of the district.

Mridley, you can rightly ignore the empty, bitter drivel posted by the sadsack above. If by "philosophy," you mean theories of learning like cognitivism, constructivism, etc., I would say an effective teacher will gravitate toward one or a combination over others, but that detailed thinking about theory does not inform the design of their units of instruction. And in the classroom, well, it is not a theoretical realm, and best avoided by anyone wishing to prove a theory.

If by "philosophy", you mean "approach to teaching," which is what I hope you mean, you are asking the right question. My philosophy is to blend interactive direct instruction with student-directed tasks that move the students toward independent understanding and mastery of the learning objective. If they can teach it back to me, then I know they've got it. They watch me do, they help me do, then they do themselves. In a now tired metaphor, I am like a coach, though far better dressed, who dreams up the drills that will help the team and the individuals improve. At the same time, the coach sequences the drills to maximum positive effect. In the metaphor the "drills" are the content of class time, and also assessments but we'll leave that for another time. I want the students to spend class time, as often as possible, in challenging performance situations. It sounds a bit Spartan on the page but when that performance situation is to act as a lawyer defending her client against a school that won't take the "F" off of her college transcript, making it impossible for her to apply to Harvard, then you can appreciate the breadth with which "performance situation" can be perceived and used in your favor. Ideally your class will never be boring, and will always advance understanding. This won't happen but nevertheless should be your goal.

And be liked. Kids don't learn from people they don't like. Hence poor Oldie up there.

Jan 29, 2017

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Pablo On 1/29/17, theinsinuator wrote: > On 1/25/17, Oldie but goodie wrote: >> Sadly, it's whatever philosophy the district is embracing this >> year. Gone are the days of "doing your own thing" and now we >> must march in step to the the tune of the district. > > Mridley, you can rightly ignore the empty, bitter dri...See MoreOn 1/29/17, theinsinuator wrote: > On 1/25/17, Oldie but goodie wrote: >> Sadly, it's whatever philosophy the district is embracing this >> year. Gone are the days of "doing your own thing" and now we >> must march in step to the the tune of the district. > > Mridley, you can rightly ignore the empty, bitter drivel posted > by the sadsack above. If by "philosophy," you mean theories of > learning like cognitivism, constructivism, etc., I would say an > effective teacher will gravitate toward one or a combination > over others, but that detailed thinking about theory does not > inform the design of their units of instruction. And in the > classroom, well, it is not a theoretical realm, and best avoided > by anyone wishing to prove a theory. > > If by "philosophy", you mean "approach to teaching," which is > what I hope you mean, you are asking the right question. My > philosophy is to blend interactive direct instruction with > student-directed tasks that move the students toward independent > understanding and mastery of the learning objective. If they can > teach it back to me, then I know they've got it. They watch me > do, they help me do, then they do themselves. In a now tired > metaphor, I am like a coach, though far better dressed, who > dreams up the drills that will help the team and the individuals > improve. At the same time, the coach sequences the drills to > maximum positive effect. In the metaphor the "drills" are the > content of class time, and also assessments but we'll leave that > for another time. I want the students to spend class time, as > often as possible, in challenging performance situations. It > sounds a bit Spartan on the page but when that performance > situation is to act as a lawyer defending her client against a > school that won't take the "F" off of her college transcript, > making it impossible for her to apply to Harvard, then you can > appreciate the breadth with which "performance situation" can be > perceived and used in your favor. Ideally your class will never > be boring, and will always advance understanding. This won't > happen but nevertheless should be your goal. > > And be liked. Kids don't learn from people they don't like. > Hence poor Oldie up there.

Jan 29, 2017

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