Philosophy
by: Megan McVannel
As a teacher, it is important that I go into each school year taking the time to get to know my students. Each student in my room is accepted as an individual and celebrated for what they bring to our class. Establishing a positive rapport with my students involves not only getting to know my students, but for them to get to know me and to learn they can trust me. I believe that it is important that my students respect me by me earning their respect instead of demanding it. This is done each school year by creating a safe and welcoming community for each student. Students come into our classroom knowing they are loved and also respected by me, their teacher. This work at the beginning of the school year sets the foundation for our classroom community for the entire year.
I have seen the positive effects of establishing as safe and strong classroom community year after year; therefore I believe in this whole-heartedly. My students look forward to coming to school and know that when I say I value their education, it is true because they can trust and respect me. The students also respect education and the values that they are learning at school. Being safe and loved in their classroom is one less thing for them to worry about while they are at school and can thrive in their stable environment each day at school.
I set high expectations for each and every one of my students. My expectations are expressed to the students and they know what I believe each one of them is capable of achieving throughout the school year. Students must work up to high standards and riggers and not only do I need to cheer them on, but I need to come along side of each student and show them that they are also capable of achieving those standards. There are times when I do not think people give children enough credit. I often hear, “they’re just a kid”. But children are amazing and are capable of so much more than we give them credit for. If believed in and are in the right environment, students grow and often surpass what many think they are capable of. If I do not believe in them and set these high expectations, how will they believe in themselves? School is difficult, both academically and socially. I firmly believe in building children up instead of bringing them down by letting them know they are able and I believe in them.
In addition to creating a strong classroom community and setting high expectations for my students, I also believe in education the whole student. By this I mean helping the student develop both academically and socially. School is both of these things – academic and social. I always believed this, but I do not think I fully understood this until I stepped into the classroom as a teacher myself. Some students come to school academically prepared, but are not prepared socially and some students are the opposite. Often times, many students have not developed the skills to be academically or socially prepared for schools or they have disabilities or impairments that make it difficult to develop these skills properly. This is part of the reason I pursued this program, the Master’s of Arts in Education program with a Special Education concentration, at Michigan State University. In order to be the teacher I believe I want to be, I have to be able to provide my students with the necessary tools to grow to be their best academic and social selves in school. I cannot simply just create a safe environment and set high expectations, I have to meet the needs of my students. Some have strong academic needs, some have strong social needs and some have strong needs in both areas.
Assessment is an important tool in helping me achieve the mentioned in my classroom. Yes, there are typical paper and pencil assessments and standardized assessments, but assessing students is much more than that. The majority of the assessing I do in my classroom is through content observation of my students. I am constantly observing and evaluating my students’ academic strengths and areas of weakness by doing formative assessments. I also take time to work with my students individually and in small groups and just check in with my students while they are working. I am also constantly observing and evaluating my students’ interactions and lack of interactions with other students and members of the school community. More formal social and behavioral observations can be done on tracking sheets and tracking data with behavior plans. These assessments give me information about where I can help students be more successful both academically and socially.
At the end of the day, I am a teacher who tries hard to make school a safe and successful place for my students. I not only want, but I believe that each of my students will reach his or her personal potential. In order to help students do this, I need to take the time to create a positive rapport with each student, get to know each student, and help provide my students with the tools they need individually to be successful in school.