Writing a personal teaching philosophy allowed me to deeply reflect on what I truly value about education. It provided me with a rare opportunity to ask myself why I want to be a teacher and consider how I can make an impact on students. Through exploring my philosophy, I realized how important self-expression and self-discovery are to me, and I was able to connect these values to student-centred and inquiry-based learning.
In his autobiography, American blues musician B.B. King wrote, “The beautiful thing about learning is nobody can take it away from you.” These simple words about the beauty of learning speak to the enduring and empowering nature of knowledge. Experiences in learning are valuable because of their ability to fuel curiosity, spark creativity, and ultimately shape one’s identity. Learning is an integral aspect of self-discovery and improvement. Even if a teacher’s exact words are forgotten, their knowledge and impact can live on forever through the students they support and inspire.
Discovery of identity and self-expression are at the heart of my education philosophy, and I intend to implement my philosophy into my future classroom through Inquiry-based learning. Education plays an essential role in students’ exploration of self-expression, and inquiry-based learning allows students to develop questions and explore topics they are most curious about. Student-centred approaches encourage students to think critically and be responsible and accountable for their education through self-guided study and setting realistic goals for themselves. To implement my philosophy in any classroom, I will plan and design activities, assignments, and projects that are student-centred and open-ended to encourage all students to express their learning and progress in tandem with engaging in their interests. Designing projects to be open-ended and using open questions to guide learning allows students the freedom to display their knowledge in any medium that is accessible or interesting to them. Empowering this freedom of expression further benefits the classroom by creating a safe, accepting, and inclusive learning environment.