Teaching Philosophy Statement

I have loved the Spanish language and culture ever since my Puerto Rican grandmother
began telling me the stories of the island and singing to me the songs of her childhood. Now, I
feel that I am connecting to my deep Spanish roots every time I use the Spanish language. After
many years of studying, I want to share the passion that I have for the Spanish language, culture,
and history with my future students by inspiring them to continue advancing their knowledge of
the Spanish world and developing their communicative skills in the Spanish language. I truly
believe that learning a foreign language is an amazing experience and achievement that broadens
one’s worldview and expands one’s ability to communicate with people from other cultures. In
order to help my future students acquire the Spanish language, my goal is to ensure that my
curriculum requires students to analyze authentic texts such as menus, poems, and books that will
increase their cultural knowledge and to produce the language in meaningful ways that develop
their speaking and writing skills.
Beyond the learning of grammar and vocabulary, one of the essential goals for my
students is to have them learn about Spain and Latin America’s literature, art, culture, history,
beliefs, and traditions. Including culture in the daily curriculum helps students become more
engaged and brings the language to life. In order to be able to merge cultural and linguistic
instruction in the allotted time I have with my students, I create lessons that incorporate the
PACE method (Presentation, Attention, Co-construction, Extension) which provides the students
with an authentic text and contextualized language. In the Presentation Stage, the students are
introduced to an authentic text orally. Then, they analyze the meaning of the text which involves
identifying its message, audience, and purpose. In the Attention Stage, I highlight a grammar
structure that is consistently used throughout the text. In the Co-construction Stage, the students
collaborate with their peers and use their critical thinking skills to predict and decipher the
purpose of the grammar structure. Finally, in the Extension Stage, the students utilize the
grammar form to produce the language in a meaningful way that connects to the lesson. The
PACE method is a highly effective way to teach students about new grammar forms, but it is also
a great way to expose students to cultural products, practices, and perspectives. When students
gain a cultural understanding of the countries that speak the foreign language, they not only
become more engaged in the lessons, but they also broaden their worldview. For example, for a
Spanish II classroom, I teach students how to communicate past events through multiple analyses
of authentic Mexican myths and legends. At the beginning of the unit, I use the PACE method in
order to introduce the students to the functions of two grammatical forms used to express the
past: the perterite and imperfect. First, I present the Mexican folk song, “La Adelita,” to the
students by playing the song and having the students decipher the mood. After analyzing the
meaning of the song, I draw students’ attention to the past tense verbs by having them underline
the preterite tense verbs and circling the imperfect tense verbs. Then, the students work together
to discover the functions of these two tenses. With some guided help, the students successfully
predict the rules of the preterite and imperfect tenses. Finally, the students use the new grammar
concept they learn to write an ending to the Mexican folk song. In the end, the students’ ability to
analyze authentic texts improves along with their knowledge of Spanish past tense and Mexican
culture and history.
Another vital goal for my students is to have them produce the language in meaningful
contexts. Consequently, I structure lessons so that students are given numerous opportunities to
practice producing the language through real-life speaking and writing activities. According to
Merrill Swain’s Output Hypothesis, comprehensible output, or producing the language, helps
students notice the gaps in their knowledge of the Spanish language, hypothesize about how to
communicate an idea with the knowledge of the language they do have, and concentrate on how
the various components of the Spanish language convey meaning. As a result, I have the students
participate in relevant, interesting, and meaningful interpersonal communication activities that
involve unrehearsed conversations so that they can enhance their speaking skills and become
more confident in their abilities. It is also vital that the students learn how to write various types
of texts in Spanish, such as stories and journal entries, because it will prepare them to use the
language in a variety of contexts. Overall, I believe speaking and writing activities are crucial
because one fully acquires a foreign language through abundant oral and written production in
the target language. For example, for a Spanish II classroom, I have the students work
individually or with a partner to write a journal entry from the point of view of one of the
characters from an authentic Spansih text. In order to expose the students to other writing pieces
and have them receive feedback on their own work, the students participate in a peer-review
session once they complete their rough drafts. This summative assessment demonstrates the
students’ flourishing ability to describe past events, and it also demonstrates their significant
cultural understanding of the authentic text.
As a dedicated Spanish teacher, I am determined to fulfill my goal by incorporating these
instructional practices into the curriculum. Foreign language learning is extremely valuable
because in an increasingly diverse society with numerous languages, cultures, and groups of
people, the ability to communicate in both the English language and in a foreign language is a
favorable quality that engenders effective communication, a broadened worldview, and greater
opportunities in life.