My educational philosophy is that education is for all learners.  My husband and I chose an early childhood center for our children based on its curriculum.  I work with youth and adults from all walks of life in my current occupation.  I encourage my parents to enroll in a class during their retirement.  I strongly feel that people are inherently lifelong learners, but that they may be turned off to formal education and it is our job as educators to re-engage them to their natural born instincts of curiosity, learning and individuality.  I feel that is the role of an educator to incorporate the student and the society into the subject matter.  And that all people, children, teenagers, adults are educators and that we learn from one another.

As I read the text for different educational philosophies I was reminded of a book I had read by Eleanor Roosevelt called Learn by Doing.  Much like Dewey suggested that people learn best from experience (Walter and Soltis, 2004); I feel that learners benefit from authentic and meaningful problem/project based learning.  At the heart of these learning activities is the integration of academics and societal partnerships.  For example, I feel that the best way a student can learn math is by doing a construction project where they are working with their classmates and professionals to create a house, playhouse or birdhouse.

In my own work I have created a partnership with the Builders Association of Eastern Connecticut to create a National Association of Home Builders Student Chapter throughout eastern Connecticut.  This group of students is just forming and will consist of an executive committee and student members.  Thirty students from five high schools will complete construction projects, reflect on their learning through an online course and receive assistance from contractors and builders in the community.  Furthermore, this chapter is affiliated with the Home Builders Institute which has created a Residential Construction Academy that formed curriculum incorporating industry standards and school academia.

Project based learning naturally emphasizes learning academics.  Another group of students I work with is an English Language Learner class.  These students are creating storybooks for elementary school children.  In this way they are practicing their English skills both vocally and through writing.  By working with a younger population they are able to practice their skills in a safer learning environment while also feeling a sense of accomplishment and pride in giving back to their community.

Much like the text states, I believe it is important to look at the society, the student and the subject perspectives when creating curriculum (Walker and Soltis, 2004).  I believe this perspective meets my interest in  project based learning because it is a way of  meeting the needs of many learners through offering enriching activities that are varied, developed based on student interest and authentic.  For example, for the students involved in the construction experience, if they find that they are not physical builders, they may take on the role of marketing the product so that the Chapter may sell it.   Many different projects are offered that incorporate workplace skills, academic achievement and decision making.

My philosophy matches my goal of providing differentiated instruction and I believe that I am moving toward creating differentiated learning environments.  I feel that I have a good handle on providing authentic and meaningful activities for students, but I struggle with organizing plentiful resources and scaffolding so that all learners can answer the essential question in their own unique manner, hence creating their own projects which now are teacher driven.  I will be attempting this method in the next few months with the groups of students I mentioned previously as I encourage them to answer the question of how their lifestyle interfaces with career choices.  I hope that they will be able to reflect on some of their work experiences, gathering data from that as well as other means of research and draw conclusions.  My biggest struggle will be keeping them interested in the topic, providing resources and offering enough support while promoting their individual thinking.  I hope that my previously mentioned idea of utilizing an online resource will help me guide them in the right direction and constantly assess their understanding and growth.   

Hewitt discusses the relationships between philosophy and curriculum in terms of progressivism, essentialism, perennialism and reconstructionism (Hewitt, p. 214).  I look at progressivism as being the umbrella with the other three falling underneath.  For example, progressivism is about problem solving and real life situations.  I see that as the tool for allowing students to learn the “essential” aspects of being productive members of society, while also learning the “perennial” humanities and the behavioral and societal impacts under the “reconstruction” theory.  Students can write a resume about an historical figure or map an area that is full of flora, fauna and history while reading poetry and using GPS tools.  Furthermore, students can work together on a team to make decisions about how to build a replica home that would fit into one historical period versus another and the many societal, environmental and practical aspects that interface in that process.

Overall, my educational philosophy is a combination of Dewey, Rousseau and Plato.  It is a combination of looking at the student, society and subjects.  Progressivism plays a key role in providing essentialism, perennialism and reconstructivism.  And by far it is that students learn best by experiencing education through their own being, which is most closely related to Differentiated Instruction.  It is my goal that through furthering my education and experience that I will be able to fine tune my skills so that I can offer the most differentiated experience for all students so that they may learn the important critical thinking, analysis and self-directed tools to best prepare them to be lifelong learners in our global society.

References:

Hewitt, T. (2006).  Understanding and shaping curriculum: what we teach and why.  Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications.

Walker, D. & Soltis, J. (2004).  Curriculum and aims.  Fourth Edition.  Teachers College Press; New York, NY.