Professional Portfolio Introduction Video

I grew up in a variety of educational settings. During elementary school, I was homeschooled in a multiage enviornment. but at the beginning in sixth grade I decided to enroll in public school During highschool I took classes online and volunteered tutoring other highschool students at the intersection which is an after-school activity center for at-risk youth I enjoyed it so much that I decided to become a teacher. I saw teaching as a way to continuously improve myself while making a positive impact on children's lives and ultimately enriching society. During my first College experience I decided to take an Introduction to American Sign Language course and immediately fell in love with the language and the culture I wanted to learn more and become fluent. This love of sign language led me to become a Deaf Educatioin major and transfer to Flagler College. My professional development courses taught me about educational theories such as Elliot Eisner's five orientations. Looking back on my own education I feel fortunate because I have firsthand experience with so many different teaching methodologies and strategies. This understanding allows me to incorporate aspects of each learning theory into my own personal philosophy of education The orientation that I am most drawn to is Personal Relevance also known as progressivism. I feel that the role of the teacher is to create a classroom enviornment that encourages collaboration creativity and a curriculum that allows students to learn in thier own way and yet still gain the same essential information and skills that they will need to become productive members of society I feel that the best way to encourage students to take ownership of their own learning. is to give them choices in how they learn. This can be accomplished though hands-on projects, with cooperative learning, and through differentiated instruction. Some subjects lend themselves more naturally to authentic assessments. Art for example is almost always assessed in alternative rather than traditional ways. However, every subject and almost every lesson can be creatively designed to incorporate higher order thinking skills, and student interest. For example a high school student can turn Beowulf into a comic strip to show his comprehension. I am a strong supporter of measuring student growth through portfolios, such as this one. When students create projects they are proud of it raises their self-esteem and intrinsically motivates them to become lifelong learners. I believe that students are naturally curious and eager to learn. From a young age they are capable of discovering truths about the world around them if given direction and guidance. This is why concrete real-world manipulative should be used as much as possible to allow students to think through cognitive processes on their own. The teacher should facilitate discussion, model good thinking strategies, and make sure the classroom remains a controlled environment through good classroom management techniques. I believe that the process that a student takes to get to an answer is just as important as the outcome. Students bring their own experiences, beliefs, and learning styles to the classroom, and these differences should be seen as a positive thing. Five students may arrive at the correct answer to a math problem by utilizing five different methods but when these differences are appreciated and students are allowed to teach each other different ways of thinking everyone gains educational tools to use in the future. My ultimate goal as a teacher is to help students become self-confident, critically thinking problem solvers who enjoy the learning process. I will know I have been successful when students are so excited about their projects that they research independently and bring in resources to teach me and their classmates something new.