MY TEACHING PHILOSOPHY
John Dave V. Laturnas
As the lesson ends and students leave, normally, we would rejoice for the long and tiring day is over. Quickly, we would clear the desk, unplug the wires, swing the broom, grab the bag and finally, shut the door. Alas! It’s done. The work is finally done. But as we walk pass the halls, something keeps bothering deep within us. We would try to dust it off our chest but we simply can’t. “Is the work really done?,” We would ask. Then as we continue to dodge our feet on ground, we begin to open our senses to the answer. Our work as a teacher doesn’t end everytime we go out of the classroom and neither it starts only as we step into the portals. For some, teaching is a just a time-in-time-out routine, but for me, it’s a way of lìfe, a commitment of excellence and passion.
I believe that in teaching, excellence is a continuous quest. One can never be too perfect in any field of work regardless of his/her towering trophies and piles of credentials. As time passes by, knowledge continues to grow and wisdom never ceases to flow. As a teacher, when everything seems to be so easy and redundant, I would always choose to be hungry for ideas for I know every day is a new oppurtunity to grow and discover new teaching strategies. At first, I thought that the only way to keep up with the demands of time is through professional trainings and workshops. Trainings are essential to keep abreast with the new trends and get on with latest researches. Hence, it’s also important to realize that self innovation and creativity are the core principles of whatever thereotical developments there may be.
More than a physical space, a classroom is a great avenue to assess our strenghts and weaknesses as teachers. For instance, personally, as I conclude my day of teaching various lessons to different types of learners, I would always take a minute or two to reflect on my teaching proficiency. I would list down the parts of the teaching process which I think I could have done better and I would take them into account to make a more effective lesson design.
Moreover, I strongly believe that teaching is a life-long learning process. We generate points to ponder on not only from self reflections on honest mistakes but also from our students. As we spend longer time with them, we become keener on their cognitive and behavioral developments and this guides us in designing our lessons according to their needs and in setting the class atmosphere in such a way that doesn’t discriminate but recognize differences. Even so, being with them gives us the highest privilege to witness their potentials unfold.
As a teacher, I’ve always believed that to achieve excellence, one must never be afraid to initiate and innovate. I know I am more than the subject that I teach so I would always develop new teaching strategies that are student-centered and interactive. This principle of innovating has always been my guide to create more effective blueprints of effective language teaching and acquisition.
From day one up until today, I’ve always lived up to excellence and passion as my philosophy as a teacher. These two make up my identity as a teacher, my guiding principles which remind me everyday that even after I step out of the classroom, the work is never done.