The child arrives like a mystery box…
with puzzle pieces inside
some of the pieces are broken or missing…
and others just seem to hide

 

But the HEART of a teacher can sort them out…
and help the child to see
the potential for greatness he has within…
a picture of what he can be

Her goal isn’t just to teach knowledge…
by filling the box with more parts
it’s putting the pieces together…
and creating a work of art

The process is painfully slow at times…
some need more help than others
each child is a work in progress…
with assorted shapes and colors

First she creates a classroom…
where the child can feel safe in school
where he never feels threatened or afraid to try…
and kindness is always the rule

She knows that a child
can achieve much more
when he feels secure inside
when he’s valued and loved…
and believes in himself

…and he has a sense of pride

She models and teaches good character…
and respect for one another
how to focus on strengths…not weaknesses
and how to encourage each other

She gives the child the freedom he needs…
to make choices on his own
so he learns to become more responsible…
and is able to stand alone

He’s taught to be strong and think for himself…
as his soul and spirit heal
and the puzzle that’s taking shape inside…
has a much more positive feel

The child discovers the joy that comes…
from learning something new…
and his vision grows as he begins
to see all the things that he can do

A picture is formed as more pieces fit…
an image of the child within
with greater strength and confidence…
and a belief that he can win!

All because a hero was there…
in the HEART of a teacher who cared
enabling the child to become much more…
than he ever imagined…or dared

A teacher with a HEART for her children…
knows what teaching is all about
she may not have all the answers…
but on this…she has no doubt

When asked which subjects she loved to teach,
she answered this way and smiled…
“It’s not the subjects that matter…
It’s all about teaching the CHILD.”

CHILDREN LEARN WHAT THEY LIVE

Children Learn What They Live
By Dorothy Law Nolte, Ph.D.

If children live with criticism, they learn to condemn.
If children live with hostility, they learn to fight.
If children live with fear, they learn to be apprehensive.
If children live with pity, they learn to feel sorry for themselves.
If children live with ridicule, they learn to feel shy.
If children live with jealousy, they learn to feel envy.
If children live with shame, they learn to feel guilty.
If children live with encouragement, they learn confidence.
If children live with tolerance, they learn patience.
If children live with praise, they learn appreciation.
If children live with acceptance, they learn to love.
If children live with approval, they learn to like themselves.
If children live with recognition, they learn it is good to have a goal.
If children live with sharing, they learn generosity.
If children live with honesty, they learn truthfulness.
If children live with fairness, they learn justice.
If children live with kindness and consideration, they learn respect.
If children live with security, they learn to have faith in themselves and in those about them.
If children live with friendliness, they learn the world is a nice place in which to live.

Copyright © 1972 by Dorothy Law Nolte

My Philosophy of Education Statement

BEHAVIORISM

*Why Teach?

 Behaviorist schools are connected with the modification and shaping of student's behavior by providing for a favorable environment, since they believe that they are a product of their environment. They are after students who exhibit desirable behavior in society.

**What to Teach? 

Because behaviorists look at "people and other animals... as complex combinations of matter that act only in response to internally or externally generated physical stimuli", behaviorist teachers teach students to respond favorably to various stimuli in the environment.

*** How to teach?

Behaviorist teachers "ought to arrange environmental conditions so that students can make the responses to stimuli. Physical variables like light, temperature, arrangement of furniture, size and quantity of visual aids have to be controlled to get the desired responses from the learners... Teachers ought to make the stimuli clear and interesting to capture and hold the learners' attention. They ought to provide appropriate incentives to reinforce positive responses and weaken or eliminate negative ones." (Trespeces, 1995)

"Philosophies of Education": Five Philosophies of Education

"Philosophies of Education": Five Philosophies of Education: ESSENTIALISM ** Why Teach? This philosophy contends that teachers teach for learners to acquire basic knowledge, skills and value...

PERENNIALISM

*Why teach?

We are all rational animals. Schools should, therefore, develop the students' rational and moral powers. According to Aristotle, if we neglect the students' reasoning skills, we deprive them of the ability to use their higher faculties to control their passions and appetites.

**What to teach? 

The perennialist curriculum is a universal one on the view that all human beings possess the same essential nature. It is heavy on the humanities, on general education. it is not a specialist curriculum but rather a general one. There is less emphasis on vocational and technical education. Philosopher Mortimer Adler claims that the Great Books of ancient and medieval as well as modern times are a repository of knowledge and wisdom, a tradition of culture which must initiate each generation." What the perennialist teachers teach are lifted from the Great Books.

***How to teach?

The perennialist classrooms are "centered around teachers" The teachers do not allow the students' interests or experiences  to substantially dictate what they teach. They apply whatever creative techniques and other tried and true methods which are believed to be most conducive to disciplining the students' minds... Students engaged in Socratic dialogues, or mutual inquiry sessions to develop an understanding of history's most timeless concepts."

EXISTENTIALISM

*Why teach?

The main concern of the existentialists is "to help students understand and appreciate themselves as unique individuals who accept complete responsibility for their thoughts, feelings and actions".

Since 'existence precedes essence', the existentialist teacher's role is to help students define their own essence by exposing them to various paths they take in life and by creating an environment in which they freely choose their own preferred way. Since feeling is not divorced from reason in decision making, the existentialist demands the education of the whole person, not just the mind."

**What to teach?

"In an existentialist curriculum, students are given a wide variety of options from which to choose." Students are afforded great latitude in their choice of subject matter. The humanities, however, are given tremendous emphasis to "provide students with vicarious experiences that will help unleash their own creativity and self-expression. For example, rather that emphasizing historical events, existentialists focus upon the actions of historical individuals, each of whom provides possible models for the students' own behavior.

Moreover, vocational education is regarded more as a means of teaching students about themselves and their potential than of earning a livelihood. In teaching art, existentialism encourages individual creativity and imagination more than copying and imitating established models."

***How to teach?

"Existentialist methods focus on the individual. Learning is self-paced, self-directed. It include a great deal of individual contact with the teacher, who relates to each student openly and honestly. To help students know themselves and their place in society, teachers employ values clarification strategy. In the use of such strategy, teachers remain non-judgmental and take care not to impose their values on their students since values are personal."

Philosophy of Education video

Five Philosophies of Education

ESSENTIALISM

 

**Why Teach?

This philosophy contends that teachers teach for learners to acquire basic knowledge, skills and values. Teachers teach "not to radically reshape society "but rather" to "transmit the traditional moral values and intellectual knowledge that students need to become model citizens.

***What to Teach?

Essentialist programs are academically rigorous. The emphasis is on academic content for students to learn the basic skills or the fundamental r's - reading, 'riting, 'rithmetic, right conduct - as these are essential to the acquisition of higher or more complex skills needed in preparation for adult life. The essentialist, curriculum includes the "traditional disciplines such as math, natural science, history, foreign language, and literature. Essentialists from upon vocational courses or other courses with 'watered down academic content.' The teachers and administrators decide what is most important for the students to learn and place little emphasis on student interests, particularly when they divert time and attention from the academic curriculum.

****How to teach?

Essentialist teachers emphasize mastery of subject matter. They are expected to be intellectual and moral models of their students. They are seen as "fountain" of information and as "paragon of virtue", if ever there is such a person. To gain mastery of basic skills, teachers have to observe "core requirements, longer school day, a longer academic year..."

With mastery of academic content as primary focus, teachers rely heavily on the use of prescribed textbooks, the drill method and other methods that will enable them to cover as much academic content as possible like the lecture method. There is a heavy stress on memorization and discipline.

• PROGRESSIVISM

**Why Teach?

Progressivist  teachers teach to develop learners into becoming enlightened and intelligent citizens of a democratic society. This group of teachers teach learners so they may live fully NOW not to prepare them for adult life.

***What to Teach?

The progressivists are identified with need-based and relevant curriculum. This is a curriculum that "responds to students' needs and that relates to students' personal lives and experiences."

Progressivists accept the impermanence of life and the inevitability of change. For the progressivists, everything else changes. Change  is the only thing that does not change. Hence, progressivist teachers are more concerned with teaching the learners the skills to cope with change. Instead of occupying themselves with teaching facts or bits of information that are true today but become obsolete tomorrow, they would rather focus their teaching on the teaching of skills or processes in gathering and evaluating information and in problem-solving.

The subjects that are given emphasis in progressivist schools are the "natural and social sciences. Teachers expose students to many new scientific, technological, and social developments, reflecting the progressivist notion that progress and change are fundamental. In addition, students solve problems in the classroom similar to those they will encounter outside of the schoolhouse."

• How to teach?

Progressivist teachers employ experiential methods. They believe that one learns by doing. For John Dewey, the most popular advocate of progressivism , book learning is no substitute for actual experience. One experiential teaching method that progressivist teachers heavily rely on is the problem-solving method. 

This problem-solving method makes use of the scientific method. Other "hands-on-minds-on" teaching methodology that progressivist teachers use are field trips which students interact with nature or society. Teachers also stimulate students through thought-provoking games, and puzzles.