When first thinking about writing my philosophy of education, an array of items painted an elaborate picture in my mind, resembling a plant. Describing this philosophy in words is quite intimidating. From national and state standards and benchmarks, to local principles, parent opinions along with the ideas that I have come to learn and believe; there is a lot to consider. Even if I am capable of effectively describing it, how often can I successfully carry it out when even some of my most well prepared lesson plans have not turned out how I had envisioned.  I hope that my philosophy will be an ideal of teaching at which I strive to attain not only within my classroom but also my school community. I also imagine that this philosophy will evolve as the years pass with my various experiences as a teacher.

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I think of students much like a plant. Some students you receive as a sapling, while others are merely seeds. As the gardener, my goal is to help the plants grow and blossom into something unique, beautiful and strong.  My gardening tools include various resources. Benchmarks, standards and the material being taught acts as the water that will help the plant grow larger and stronger. However some plants may not have strong roots or perhaps they have weak stems. Using school resources along with remembering to give them the special fertilizers or trellises they need to help them can reinforce these students and allow them to grow more.

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I like to make my trellis high, giving my student high expectations. I have always liked the quote “Shoot for the moon, because even if you miss you will land among the stars”. This is the quote I always like to keep in mind when teaching. I like to hold high expectations for my students (which of course can vary between students), because even if they do not climb to the very top of the trellis I find that they will still have grown a great deal. I believe that it is important to set high expectations not only in the traditional academic sense but also within citizenship both in and out of the classroom, which in my opinion can be just as important, strengthening the plant.

It is also imperative to be flexible.  Sudden frosts can occur, even the most well planned lessons can go astray and it is important that the teacher can be flexible and readjust in order for the students and the lesson to be successful. 

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I think one of the most important aspects of teaching is having a positive attitude and positive energy, which I think of as the sunshine. Depending on the moment a teacher can be motivational, goofy, challenging, reasonable, or optimistic. I’ve found when you are enthusiastic about a lesson most students feed off your positive vibes. I have often been able to notice when a teacher is teaching a subject they are not fond of because of their low energy level when presenting the material. Students will, on some level, notice this as well and in my opinion be less willing to participate. I think another part of this positive attitude calls for encouraging and supporting educational inquiry. Some gardeners want plants to climb or grow in a certain pattern. Most of the time just encouraging the plant to reach and grow in that direction helps the plant a great deal. Getting students to find an interest in the subject material will in turn act as an intrinsic motivator for the student. This will lead to the student being more excited about learning the material, which usually makes learning less challenging for the student, allowing for a growth spurt in ideal conditions. 

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Tending to a garden is a lot of work keeping the weeds out, keeping the plants healthy and growing. Some days it seems like some of the plants are never going to grow more and then surprise you when you try a different fertilizer. I hope that I am able to help students grow and hopefully they are able to blossom in spring.