Teaching Philosophy
I believe that children need encouragement, high expectations, and experiences to grow as a person, as well as in their educational pursuits. As a teacher, it is my job to provide each of these to my students. I think that encouragement increases a child's self-concept which helps the child to feel more comfortable taking risks. A child must take risks and realize that it is acceptable to be wrong on occasion in order to learn--no one is correct all of the time. Experiences are meaningful. A child who is provided with new experiences will have a growing knowledge base and feel self-compelled, not required, to learn. I will have high expectations for my students and teach them to have high expectations for themselves. I will not accept mediocrity from my students when I know that (s)he is capable of more; instead, I will encourage excellence and effort from my students. Family involvement is also of paramount importance. As the educator, I will keep parents involved in their child's education by encouraging them to share their thoughts, feelings, and goals for their child. Open communication between the parent and educator is imperative, so I will provide a variety of communication avenues for parents to choose the option that best suits them. I will help parents learn to be advocates for their child so that, in turn, their child can become a good self-advocate. I will be a resource for parents so that they can continue to expand their knowledge in terms of their child's hearing loss and his/her education.