Robby Hill

Instr. Katie Rasmussen

LS 3001
9 February 2015
My Teaching Philosophy
My teaching philosophy to this point has been mostly informed by my
experience as a student. While I know my teaching philosophy will evolve as I
continue to study and gain direct experience in a classroom, the foundation of my
views was developed from my personal perspective as a student, which I intend to
stay connected to as a vital part of being an effective educator. When I reflect on
the most powerful learning experiences I had growing up, they all have one thing in
common: I was opting into the learning experience out of genuine enthusiasm for
the subject. Not surprisingly, my most challenging academic experiences also
shared a common thread: I had slim to no interest in the subject, and was learning
as a means to a passing grade. This perfunctory, transactional learning invariably
resulted in poor performance. By contrast, the learning that occurred for its own joy
and satisfaction always produced favorable results. The key difference was agency.
I needed room to explore and get hungry for knowledge, as opposed to being forcefed. Consequently, I think infusing the classroom with a touch of democracy is
crucial.
This desire to empower students in their learning process aligns with John
Deweys progressivism. I resonated with many of the education reformers weve
covered thus far, but John Dewey lit me up most of all because his philosophy

underscores the connection between school life and life after school, or the real
world. John Dewey was concerned with readying students for their roles as citizens
in a democratic society, and created programs that were embryonic community
life. In my view, there is no more effective way to get students excited about
learning than to show them the connection between what theyre studying and how
it is relevant to their lives outside of the classroom. Once that excitement is ignited,
I believe it is important to let the student follow it, which is another hallmark of John
Deweys philosophy. He believed that students should participate in all aspects of
student life, from what they learned to how the school itself is run.
I can recall two book reports I did in grammar school that illustrate the
importance of agency in school. One was for a book called Island of the Blue
Dolphins. Island of the Blue Dolphins was assigned reading; I could not have had
less interest in reading it. To this day, I couldnt tell you exactly what it was about. I
remember opening it up to read whatever the assigned chapter was and rereading
paragraphs and sentences over and over because I couldnt maintain the level of
interest required to understand what was going on. I had no connection to the
world in the story or to the central character, and studying something I had no
relationship to and had no interest in felt oppressive. I di so poorly on the report,
my reading comprehension was questioned.
In that same year, I did a book report on The Wind in the Willows, and the
experience off reading and writing about it, as well as the grade I earned, couldnt
have contrasted more sharply with my experience with Island of the Blue Dolphins.
The story follows a mole from his first experiences out of his home in the ground.
There is a clear connection between Moles adventures and the adventure of being
a child, experiencing things for the first time, socializing with different people, and

negotiating life out of the safety off ones home life. I devoured the book and wrote
a paper that proved my reading comprehension was not the problem with the
previous report.
I know it isnt practical for teachers to follow the whims of their students
interests all the time, but democracy needs to be structured in so that students can
feel that they are in some way choosing to learn. And in instances where that
choice is not possible, I believe it is incumbent on the instructor to clearly show how
the lesson at hand is relevant to the students life and interests.