Teaching Philosophy
"Education is not the filling of a pail, but the lighting of a fire."
-William Butler Yeats
I believe that it is my job to teach foreign language in a way that is meaningful to a student’s every day world. I want to make my students aware that language is a key to unlocking other cultures. Understanding another culture broadens perspectives, opens up minds, and empowers students to succeed and take part as responsible citizens in the world.
A recent strategy by Ross Greene, called Collaborative Problem Solving, develops community and make students who are having a hard time feel as if they are being heard. When a student is acting out, there are probably underlying problems, and if the student and I can work together to find the problem and fix it, then our community gets stronger and the student can grow as a learner.If every student feels like they contribute something valuable to the class, then they can develop a sense of individual agency in addition to being a part of a learning community. It is essential for students to play a role within their learning communities in order for them to become knowledgeable citizens in a democratic society. Foreign language classes teach students how to respect each other’s opinions and cultures; learning about other cultures and ways of life makes them more effective in their own societies.
I also believe that every student learns differently, therefore, differentiating the material is essential in every lesson. Learning through movement, art, music, and visuals helps all students have a chance to grasp concepts they might not understand through lecture/note methods of teaching. I believe that laughter and games are a natural part of a foreign language classroom because, as they learn things that most of them have never been exposed to, the mistakes they make and the things they find strange become part of the learning process.
I like to use drama strategies in the foreign language classroom because they end up learning through play; most of the time they do not even realize they are learning. I adapt Wilhelm’s Action Strategies from the book for the foreign language classroom and I encourage students to participate and take ownership in their own learning. Teachers can facilitate this by using authentic materials that are relevant and interesting cultural artifacts to teach students not only the language, but the culture of the countries where the target language is spoken, and help them make connections to their own cultures and become better global citizens.
As part of my Master's in Teaching program, I taught part of a French graphic novel to a French II class. The novel, Le Chat du Rabbin, (The Rabbi’s Cat), is set in colonized Algeria, in a Jewish pocket of Algiers, where the Cat actually learns to speak and can translate between French, Arabic, Russian, and other animals. The graphic novel is a great way to teach to different learning styles. We use visual literacy by analyzing the different colors in the panels and how the words are illustrated; we can reach the auditory learners by reading to them and having them interpret the language panel by panel; and we reach the kinesthetic learners by having them act out what is happening in the story.
When I taught this unit, the students were really engaged and really enjoyed “figuring out the language” and found it to “make sense when the pictures go with it,” according to a few students. Graphic novels are an excellent way of reaching “Generation Y” because it is a medium that is visual, similar to the outlets of social media that they are plugged into. There are moving images, linear story lines, and text supported with a visual, all things that students grew up learning. In each lesson, we often had class discussions about how the media effects our opinions, and how it makes our culture unique. Using a graphic novel helps students become better global citizens in a media rich world.
The use of a Jewish graphic novel specifically helped them open their minds to other cultures in other parts of the world--something that they do not normally learn in school.
My intention is for every student to be inspired by the world around them. I do not expect each student to be "the best" but I expect each student to do their best. School is about more than learning facts and social skills--it is about learning how to live a happy life. Curiosity, growth, community, and grit - these are all facets of a happy citizen.
Currently, I am inspired by the work of Grant Lichtman in his book "#EdJourney: A Roadmap to the Future of Education." He talks about the future of education and how the internet has changed everything. Students need to pushed into the tech and engineering world more, because that is how the world is changing, but the arts still need to flourish, otherwise we would have no culture or growth as a community. Computers are great--but they cannot give a child the emotional and creative support that a teacher can give.
A recent strategy by Ross Greene, called Collaborative Problem Solving, develops community and make students who are having a hard time feel as if they are being heard. When a student is acting out, there are probably underlying problems, and if the student and I can work together to find the problem and fix it, then our community gets stronger and the student can grow as a learner.If every student feels like they contribute something valuable to the class, then they can develop a sense of individual agency in addition to being a part of a learning community. It is essential for students to play a role within their learning communities in order for them to become knowledgeable citizens in a democratic society. Foreign language classes teach students how to respect each other’s opinions and cultures; learning about other cultures and ways of life makes them more effective in their own societies.
I also believe that every student learns differently, therefore, differentiating the material is essential in every lesson. Learning through movement, art, music, and visuals helps all students have a chance to grasp concepts they might not understand through lecture/note methods of teaching. I believe that laughter and games are a natural part of a foreign language classroom because, as they learn things that most of them have never been exposed to, the mistakes they make and the things they find strange become part of the learning process.
I like to use drama strategies in the foreign language classroom because they end up learning through play; most of the time they do not even realize they are learning. I adapt Wilhelm’s Action Strategies from the book for the foreign language classroom and I encourage students to participate and take ownership in their own learning. Teachers can facilitate this by using authentic materials that are relevant and interesting cultural artifacts to teach students not only the language, but the culture of the countries where the target language is spoken, and help them make connections to their own cultures and become better global citizens.
As part of my Master's in Teaching program, I taught part of a French graphic novel to a French II class. The novel, Le Chat du Rabbin, (The Rabbi’s Cat), is set in colonized Algeria, in a Jewish pocket of Algiers, where the Cat actually learns to speak and can translate between French, Arabic, Russian, and other animals. The graphic novel is a great way to teach to different learning styles. We use visual literacy by analyzing the different colors in the panels and how the words are illustrated; we can reach the auditory learners by reading to them and having them interpret the language panel by panel; and we reach the kinesthetic learners by having them act out what is happening in the story.
When I taught this unit, the students were really engaged and really enjoyed “figuring out the language” and found it to “make sense when the pictures go with it,” according to a few students. Graphic novels are an excellent way of reaching “Generation Y” because it is a medium that is visual, similar to the outlets of social media that they are plugged into. There are moving images, linear story lines, and text supported with a visual, all things that students grew up learning. In each lesson, we often had class discussions about how the media effects our opinions, and how it makes our culture unique. Using a graphic novel helps students become better global citizens in a media rich world.
The use of a Jewish graphic novel specifically helped them open their minds to other cultures in other parts of the world--something that they do not normally learn in school.
My intention is for every student to be inspired by the world around them. I do not expect each student to be "the best" but I expect each student to do their best. School is about more than learning facts and social skills--it is about learning how to live a happy life. Curiosity, growth, community, and grit - these are all facets of a happy citizen.
Currently, I am inspired by the work of Grant Lichtman in his book "#EdJourney: A Roadmap to the Future of Education." He talks about the future of education and how the internet has changed everything. Students need to pushed into the tech and engineering world more, because that is how the world is changing, but the arts still need to flourish, otherwise we would have no culture or growth as a community. Computers are great--but they cannot give a child the emotional and creative support that a teacher can give.