Philosophy of Education

Running head: PHILOSOPHY OF EDUCATION; BEHAVIORISM

Philosophy of Education;
Behaviorism

Abstract
B. F. Skinner created behaviorism and this is what I selected as my philosophy for education. Behaviorism uses conditioning to effect behaviors of students. Teachers can apply positive and negative reinforcements, such as stickers, praise, and rewards. My philosophy of teaching is that students should be able to learn how to communicate with others and have fun while learning. Throughout this paper I will discuss my philosophy and how I will use the methods in my day to day teaching.

Introduction
A hundred years from now it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove, but the world maybe different because I was important in the life of a child. I will begin my paper with a quote that has always resounded with me and encouraged me to be a teacher. Regardless of the model or philosophy that you chose as a teacher, you have the opportunity to change the life of a child. There are different models teachers can chose from, but I chose the behaviorist model. The behaviorist model is the best suited choice for my style of teaching.
Philosophy of Life
My philosophy of life has changed over the years. As a teenager, I would have said that materialistic things gave my life value. Now I value my family, friends, God, nature, and people. As a future teacher, I value the opportunity to be able to achieve my goals in becoming an educator and role model to young children. I value the idea of contributing to improving the society. I want my children in my class to learn how to develop positive relationships with their peers. I believe that all children should receive a fair education. All children deserve a fair shot at learning and their future. I want my students to build confidence and achieve their goals. I want the children to grow socially, academically, and emotionally.
To understand the world around us, we Christians need to have a robust metaphysics (Spears 2003, p.8).Metaphysics are considered to be one of the greatest philosophical works. Metaphysics examines the existence of things that cannot be known or understood through the senses, such as consciousness, the immortality of souls, freedom of the will, and of course God (Spears 2003, p.7). Aristotle proposed the first of these investigations. Aristotle called it ‘first philosophy’, sometimes also ‘the science of being’ (more-or-less what ‘ontology’ means); but at some point in antiquity his writings on the topic came to be known as the ‘metaphysics’ – from the Greek for ‘after natural things’, that is, what comes after the study of nature (Craig, 1998). Teachers must have an understanding of metaphysics in order to prepare students for life. Educators can understand their students and can craft pedagogical methods that will meet their needs through metaphysics (Spears 2003, p.7).
Philosophy of Teaching Layman writes that behaviorism is a philosophy of education (p.45). This philosophy ties most closely to my personal beliefs. Behaviorism uses conditioning to effect behaviors of students. Teachers can apply positive and negative reinforcements, such as stickers, praise, and rewards. My philosophy of teaching is that students should be able to learn how to communicate with others and have fun while learning. Students must have a structured learning environment, but should be able to enjoy learning. It is vital for students to be able to communicate with others. There are some students that are shy and keep quiet, but I want to be able to bring those students out of their shell and make them communicate with their peers. I will do this by adding group activities into my lesson plans, which will be enjoyable too.
Classroom instruction
MacCullough writes that the behaviorist learning model believes that the learner is passive (p.45). As the teacher I would communicate the knowledge and material. I would help the students reach the correct response. The behaviorist learning model focuses on a certain content or subject area (MacCullough 2003, p.45). The teacher tells, tests, and reinforces the material to help the student gain knowledge in the subject (MacCullough 2003, p.45). In this model, grades help reinforce student learning. I would value homework, tests, and ways to help students engage in the material. As a teacher, I would ask the students to take notes or use memorization.
Relationships in Teaching
There are many responsibilities and expectations that come along with a teaching career. David Eklind says, “Teachers are important role models for children. When teachers are no longer excited about what they are teaching and have lost their commitment to young people, their effectiveness as role models is lost or diminished” (2003, p.150). Teachers are role models every moment of every day (2003, p.149). The teacher’s primary responsibility in the Christian school is twofold, to be both the spiritual leader and the academic leader (2003, p.147). A Christian school teacher is responsible to explain who we are, why we are here, and where we are going (2003, p.147). A Christian teacher is a spiritual leader, biblical role model, reflection of Christ, mentor, and academic leader. Students are responsible for completing their assignments and turning them in on time. Also, they are responsible to study and memorize subject material for tests and quizzes. Each student is responsible for asking questions if they do not understand or coordinating after or before school help. They are responsible for their discussing and sharing their grades, struggles, and achievements to their parent/guardian. Not only are students responsible academically, but they must follow the schools rules. Students have to respect the school property, staff, and their peers. All students must play and work safely at all times. I believe that students that are given responsibilities at school and at home will be more successfully academically.
Teachers and students can work together in many ways. All teachers should incorporate different activities into their lesson plans for all types of learners. I believe that it is very important for teachers to know how each of their students learns best. A teacher should have open and comfortable classrooms to encourage sharing and questioning. Students and teachers can work together to improve schools too.
Diversity in the Classroom
Diversity is no longer an idea that occurs in some schools or neighborhoods, our classrooms are now a mixing bowl of children. As teachers, we can embrace the diversity and bring this into our classroom to help our children learn to be proud of their heritage. I like the idea of using bilingual aides in the classroom and enlisting the help of family members or volunteers. I believe that all children would benefit from this and become more diverse as and tolerant at a young age. I thought this was a great idea to include all students not just the ones who are learning English as a second language. For students from diverse cultures, ethnic identification means providing them with opportunities to develop positive self-images of themselves and their rich cultural heritage (Vacca, 2012). Another way to incorporate diversity would be to have children share with the classroom their heritage and beliefs. Every student could participate in this activity and bring clothes, items, or food that is important to their family or heritage. Diversity is no longer an idea that occurs in some schools or neighborhoods, our classrooms are now a mixing bowl of children. As teachers, we can embrace the diversity and bring this into our classroom to help our children learn to be proud of their heritage.
Conclusion
Classrooms have changed since I was in grade school. As a teacher, I will need to stay up to date with the changes in models, concepts, and technology. Being up to date with my teaching will provide the best learning experience for my students. Even though I have discussed behaviorist theories in this paper, I will use concepts and activities from other models for my classroom. I want to become an elementary school teacher, so my teaching will impact the students’ complete education.

References
Braley, Layman, & White (Eds). (2003). Foundations of Christian School Education. Purposeful
Design: Colorado.
Craig, Edward (1998). Metaphysics. In E. Craig (Ed.), Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy. London: Routledge. Retrieved March 06, 2013, from http://www.rep.routledge.com/article/N095.
Vacca, J. L., Vacca, R. T., Gove, M. K., Burkey, L. C., Lenhart, L. A., & McKeon, C. A.
(2012). Reading and learning to read (8th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson.

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References: Braley, Layman, & White (Eds). (2003). Foundations of Christian School Education. Purposeful Design: Colorado. Craig, Edward (1998). Metaphysics. In E. Craig (Ed.), Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy. London: Routledge. Retrieved March 06, 2013, from http://www.rep.routledge.com/article/N095. Vacca, J. L., Vacca, R. T., Gove, M. K., Burkey, L. C., Lenhart, L. A., & McKeon, C. A. (2012). Reading and learning to read (8th ed.). Boston, MA: Pearson. Please note, this site uses web standards that your browser does not support. See help for further information. | |