Junez 1

Yarelin Junez

Professor Sgobba

Education 201

16 December 2021

Philosophy of Education Paper

I am choosing this profession because I want to inspire the next generation to love school

and to love learning. I have always been taking care of children since I was five years old when

my brother was born and as he grew up, I would teach him how to count, add and read. Having a

big family inspired me to educate the next generation and make a difference because I would

want to create educative experiences based on the concerns of the students. As Dewey cautions,

learning can only happen when the material being learned is funded with personal meaning. “As

Montessori prescribes, the classroom environment must be carefully planned to allow for the

development of every child’s unique traits.” (Garte). With younger children always around me I

have grown the patience to care for them. Seeing each child grow in their own individual unique

way influences me to not let the next generation down. I want each child to succeed and

accomplish anything they wish because each child deserves the opportunity of an education.

Witnessing experiences where the education system fails a child breaks my heart and I want to

be a part of how it will not. There is nothing else that I would want to do more than cater to

child’s needs and assist the way they look at the world and school. “Progressive education is the

best way for students to experience real-world situations, say advocates. For example, the

workplace is a collaborative environment that requires teamwork, critical thinking, creativity,

and the ability to work independently. Experiential learning, by helping students develop these

skills, better prepares them for college and life as productive members of the workplace”
 Junez 2

(Kennedy). This inspires me to teach progressively and to teach in my own way and influence

the next generation. Therefore, my philosophy of education is progressive, and I believe that this

is the philosophy that will complement the way I handle my profession. “The phrase Progressive

Education conjures images of children exploring freely, calling their teachers by their first names

and sitting in circles to express their feelings.” (Garte). I believe my skill set of raising and being

around children continuously for more than ten years has earned me the skill set and seniority

that will serve and benefit me soon. My knowledge and experience with children have prepared

me for the obstacles that come my way and made me look forward be in this profession even

more. My field observation helped me understand the teaching environment because I observed

how to talk to the kids when you are talking to all of them or just one. I learned how talk to them

when they are misbehaving and how to grab their attention as well. I understood even more how

different each individual child is and how they all learn and listen in their own specific way and

how to assist based on each of their needs.

The educational philosophy orientation would have to be progressive because I want to

teach based on the students’ interests and my beliefs are centered around the children. “In

Deweyian language, education was said to prepare students for social life. Educational activities

were to be based on individual students and on relevant experiences, or 'problems'. Education

was seen to play the dual role or 'socialising' the child, of 'adjusting' him or her to the main

society, while at the same time, providing for his or her individual growth” (Broom). I aspire to

teach my future students in this way and to prepare them for the “main society”. I believe the

students should not just sit in their seats while they listen to me lecture the entire class. My

educational philosophy helps me decide that I want the students to be involved helps me dictate

my beliefs about education. My knowledge of historical events set the stage for how I think
 Junez 3

about children and schools because I want children to be involved and excited to go to school

and learn. “In traditional education, the teacher leads the class from the front, whereas a more

progressive teaching model sees the teacher as a facilitator who interacts with students and

encourages them to think and question the world around them” (Kennedy). This sets the stage for

how I will think about children and schools because I want the children to think beyond the

classroom and implement the real world and school. According to Kennedy, “School activities

and the life experiences of the students should be connected, Dewey believed, or else real

learning would be impossible. Cutting students off from their psychological ties—society and

family—would make their learning journeys less meaningful and thereby make learning less

memorable”. This shows that with the connection students will absorb more information and be

able to take in even more.

The strategies that I will implement will be hands-on learning, group activities and

independent work as well. “The concept, known as experiential learning, uses hands-on projects

that allow students to learn by actively engaging in activities that put their knowledge to use”

(Kennedy). One approach to learning, student diversity, and student variability, and assessment

will be to allow them to decorate their desk based on their favorite subject, for example if they

love reading and their favorite story is Goldilocks and the Three Bears, they can implement that

into their desk. Another approach would be to teach class outside, have field trips often and have

the class incorporate nature and the outside world. I also would approach assessment in way that

would benefit all the students as well, for example tests taken orally, written, or projects as well

to help every student by assessing them in the way they can demonstrate their abilities best. I

believe just giving an exam and a scantron does not display the full amount of knowledge each

student contained during their time throughout the year. The students should also learn about real
 Junez 4

life issues, and they should be implemented throughout the lessons. For example, showing the

children how to recycle, to avoid littering and how to take care of the planet. Also, to execute the

idea of recycling and weaving that into the lesson would be to have a project based on how

recycling is good for the environment and a friendly competition based on who recycled the most

with a prize in the end. “Dewey argued that education should not simply involve making students

learn mindless facts that they would soon forget. He thought that education should be a journey

of experiences, building upon each other to help students create and understand new

experiences.”, (Kennedy).

The qualities that are needed to move forward in this career are a wide range of creativity

and flexibility and to be open-minded with the changes that are implemented through the lesson.

“For teachers, that greater purpose is the creation of a more equitable society. Progressive,

emancipatory teachers must be fully committed to that cause before they ever enter a classroom”,

(Garte). This quote from Rebeca Garte is something I agree with because teachers should be

passionate, and I am for the children and creating an environment they are excited to learn in and

look forward to entering. I want the students to learn in different ways such as learning hands-on,

involve socializing with peers and doing projects. “The building of curriculum; weaving

knowledge and skills into naturally meaningful experiences for a wide diversity of children is the

reason that the emancipatory, progressive teacher must also be an artist. The creativity required

to develop such a curriculum is vast. The teacher must be able to think visually, musically and

through stories to engage the varied learning and cultural styles of each student.”, (Garte). I plan

to undertake volunteering and gaining a lot of experience around children and learning about

their interests and the ways each student obtains information the best. I plan to spend a lot of

time volunteering in places that have children and teach them progressively as well.
 Junez 5

Works Cited

Broom, Catherine. “British Columbian Geography in Historical Perspective.” International

Research in Geographical & Environmental Education, vol. 17, no. 3, July 2008, pp.

268–285. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1080/10382040802168354

Garte, Rebecca. “American Progressive Education and the Schooling of Poor Children: A Brief

History of a Philosophy in Practice.” International Journal of Progressive Education,

vol. 13, no. 2, Jan. 2017, pp. 7–17. EBSCOhost, search-ebscohost-

com.ezproxy.library.csn.edu/login.aspx?

direct=true&db=eric&AN=EJ1145585&site=ehost-live.

Kennedy, Robert. "Progressive Education: How Children Learn." ThoughtCo, Aug. 26, 2020,

thoughtco.com/progressive-education-how-children-learn-today-2774713.