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Philosophy of Teaching
Having a passion for people around the world and teaching, I am on a path to a degree
in Bilingual Education so that I can work with adolescent students and facilitate while
they learn the English language. Erik Erikson says that from the ages of twelve to
eighteen students are going through the phase of identity verse role confusion. ESL
students and students from different backgrounds struggle with this as much as if not
more than their peers. I hope that as a teacher I can help facilitate during this stage and
help with their development. As students in middle school are going through identity
crisis I hope to make my classroom a safe space that encourages students to express their
own culture, language, and customs as they try to figure out who they are.
As a teacher I think it will be extremely important to incorporate students cultures
into my lessons to help their identity development and break down the walls of having to
assimilate into white norms. For many students of different ethnic backgrounds an
identity conflict forms because as Kim (2012) explains, They live in a society that has
institutionalized racism throughout its major structures, cultures, and value systems
(p.144). If only these white norms surround students education the students of different
ethnic backgrounds begin to believe they have become victim to the idea of racial
prejudice. They believe the white race is superior to them and has created a sense of
normalcy that these now have to conform to or will be seen as an outsider by their peers
(p. 142). In adolescence Asian Americans begin to reject their cultural norms in order to
reshape themselves to a white model (p. 143).

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Instead I hope to create a community in my classroom that opens students to the idea
that their racial identity can be a great positive component to figuring out who they are
and who they want to be. Kim (2012) defines racial identity as, A persons identification
with membership in a socially designated racial group and this identification is largely
influenced by socialization around race ( p.139). I can help students to find their
intellectual potential on their way to becoming an adult by expanding knowledge on their
race that also helps to define students identity. In the classroom to help with what
Noguera (2009) defines as students identity formation process I as a teacher can,
incorporate information related to the history and culture of students into [my]
curriculum (p.1). By seeing how important and highly valued the components of their
culture are to their individual identity they can then decide how they want to include
these aspects into which they want to be.
As an ESL teacher one of my implications for teaching will be to tap into students
first language and use it as a resource in the growth of his/her new language, English.
Many teachers do not tap the resource that every ESL student already carries, instead
they try to only use English with the misconception that students can learn English if
surrounded by only that language. Instead I plan to utilize the students skills in their
previous learned languages and help the students to grow in that language as well as
English. Bransford, Brown, and Cocking (2000) explain, The contemporary view of
learning is that people construct new knowledge and understanding based on what they
already know and believe (p.10) As a teacher I will take into account what the student
already knows in their first language and then figure out how to build on that idea in
order to increase the students understanding of the differences and similarities between

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the two languages. I do understand that some students may not be that strong in their first
language and therefore may need help in both areas. Many Latino students want and
need to develop both their Spanish and English Literacies, but the need to accomplish
tasks which typical school curricula and instructional activities fail to prepare them for
this (Jiminez, 2001, p.737). I believe that both languages should develop together rather
than stopping one for the other. Jiminez (2001) reports that, The use of Spanish and
English both orally and in writing is sophisticated and a worthwhile objective (p.736).
The positives of including both languages outweigh the negatives and come to make me
realize that this is a key tool that I want to take advantage of when formatting my
curriculum and helping my students figure out their identity. Three key components that
Bransford et al. (2000) lays out and I intend to implement in my teaching are, Recognize
predictable preconceptions, draw out preconceptions that are not predictable, work with
preconceptions so that children build on them, challenge them and, when appropriate,
replace them (p.20).
For students that come from different ethnic backgrounds than the norm, they may
have customs that if practiced in the public or without support will make them feel
ashamed and want to hide. By creating my classroom to be a safe space and making
myself a confidant I am confirming to my students that they can practice any of their
customs in a safe non-judgmental place or that if they practice in public where there is
someone supporting them. Whether it be making the choice to wear a hijab everyday or
believing in certain superstitions that can get in the way of typical education I feel they
need to be supported by myself, their teacher, and their peers who may be going through
similar conflicts. By having a safe space the students can create a community where they

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can experiment with who they are (Nakkula, Toshalis, 2010) students can focus less on
others judging them and more on their learning and self identity. I want my ESL students
to feel that my classroom is a home place where they are understood and can safely
exchange their ideas, desires, and emotions to myself and other students. I think having
this place is extremely important because they may not have this kind of place anywhere
else. I agree with Nakkula and Toshalis (2010) that it is the job of teachers to, Promote
learning and creativity through safe and enriching experiences (113). Once students feel
they are in an environment where they will not be judged for their customs they can focus
more on the need to do well in school and focus on learning English. For adolescents the
idea of being judged is strong and extremely influential to the students identity and
education. However if the students feel that they are being supported and accepted they
can feel free to grow in these two areas at their own rate and with minimal distractions.
As an educator I hope to take into account the cultures, languages and customs of my
students and use them to both the students advantage and mine. I hope that as an educator
that I can create my classroom to be a home space where students feel comfortable to
explore their cultures and themselves. I hope to take the previous knowledge that they
will come to school with and use it to enrich their education with explicit teaching of new
topics that they are motivated to learn. Not having much experience in the classroom yet I
can only hope that these ideas of teaching will hold true when I have my own classroom,
but I am confident that if I apply these ideas it will make all the difference in my teaching
and my students learning.

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References
Kim, J. (2012). Asian American racial identity development theory. In C. Wijeyesinghe
& B. Jackson (Eds.), New perspectives on racial identity development (pp. 138161). New York: New York University Press.
Noguera, P. (2009). The Trouble with Black Boys. Malden, MA: Jossey-Bass.
Bransford, J., Brown, A., Cocking, R. (eds.) (2000). How people learn: Brain, mind,
experience and school. Washington DC: National Academies Press.
Jim nez, . T. (2001). Its a difference that changes us An alternative view of the
language and literacy learning needs of Latina/o students. The Reading Teacher,
54 (8), 736- 742.
Nakkula, M. & Toshalis, E. (2010). Understanding youth: Adolescent development for
educators. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Education Press.