The Opportunities for Excellence :: Philosophy of Teaching Education Essays

The Opportunities for Excellence Like many other students in the public school system, I had my share of â€Å"good† teachers and â€Å"bad† teachers, but I learned valuable things from each of them: from the â€Å"good† teachers, inspiration to enter education and how to be a good teacher, from the â€Å"bad† teachers, if nothing else, what not to be. As important as education is to children’s success in life, they should have as many positive influences as possible. I will strive to be the best teacher I can be, not only to be marked as one of the â€Å"good†, but one of the â€Å"great† teachers of education. As a student, I found the â€Å"good† teachers to be those that went the extra mile to help children fulfill individual interests. Sponsorship of clubs and organizations, home visits, etc. have been traditional methods of supplementing education, but computers and the Internet have given rise to many new avenues, such as e-mail correspondence and more powerful, contemporary research information. Recent coordination of colleges and high schools has also provided students interested in attending college the opportunity to advance their pursuits in continued education by allowing them to correlate their high school classes with the college curriculum for dual credit. I will use these tools, along with many others, to heighten the educational experience for my students. I also recall my â€Å"good† teachers as moral role models. Their upstanding character, fairness and general nature were reflected in their students, as will the traits of future teachers for many years to come. Also, the trend continues for children to have less and less influence at home, be it due to non-traditional families, both parents working, etc. Even more, a greater diversity of classroom ethnicity introduces a broader set of values, and further challenges teachers to be open to other cultures. They are also given the responsibility of enculturation, conveying the appreciation of other cultures to their students. This can amount to as little as contribution and additive methods, appending other cultures’ ideas into core philosophy, to as much as transformation or social action, integrating other cultures into the curriculum as part of the norm. All of these factors leave a greater weight of shaping children’s mindset on teachers. As an upcoming educator, I feel a great responsibility to maintain respectability and general good character as a positive example for my students.