Individual Philosophy of Education

Personal Philosophy of Education

One of the most important elements in teaching practice is developing a personal educational philosophy that guides practices in the classroom and shape the decision-making process. My personal educational philosophy for my classroom environment is to provide opportunities that challenge students and provoke them to grow and develop towards realization of their individual full potential. This would entail taking students or learners through different levels in the learning process and experience and witness their collective development towards the betterment of every individual.

Based on my personal educational philosophy, there are two major perspectives that will characterize the learning process and experience. First, every student in my classroom will have freedom that enables self-expression and creativity during learning. In this case, the learners will have the liberty to experiment with likes and dislikes in order to identify their individual strengths and weaknesses. Once this is achieved, I will develop the curriculum and course content in a manner that suits or aligns with the learning style of every individual student. In addition to providing straight-forward instruction, students will have opportunities for growth and development on their own.

The second element that will characterize my classroom environment is promoting group or team work across various learning activities. Individual growth in the classroom environment requires group work that contributes to the achievement of valuable knowledge and insights in the learning process. As a result, the group work will act as the basis for changing every student and creating an atmosphere that results in the growth of the entire class. Creating group work in the classroom is based on my belief that educators not only need to assist students but also need to create opportunities for them to help others through giving direction.

My personal educational philosophy is influenced by several factors including personal experience and philosophical perspectives from different theorists. In light of my personal experience, I am constantly being prepared to develop an inclusive classroom that addresses the needs of students and prepares lessons accordingly. These experiences have also shaped my understanding of the value of teacher encouragement and support as well as personal motivation in the learning process. The creation of a supportive learning environment through personal attention and promoting group work is essential in my classroom environment and acts as the basis of my personal philosophy of education. Apart from group work, student motivation in the learning process will be achieved through providing challenging and supportive lessons, assignments, and learning activities.

The three educational philosophies or theories that have influenced my personal philosophy of education are progressivism, information processing, and cognitivism or constructivism. Cognitivism or constructivism is a form of realism that emphasizes the re-arrangement of psychological structures of a person making sense of the world (Schuh & Barab, n.d.). In contrast, progressivism emphasizes that ideals should be assessed through experimentation, which implies that learning is embedded in interaction with others while information processing postulates that meaning is derived from symbol-processing structures (Yurumezoglu & Oguz, 2007).