Stepping Into Someone's Shoes

I am a 17-year-old Inuit girl. My people are indigenous to the Americas but that does not make us Native Americans. There are many different groups of people that are native to the Americas. We all live in very different environment with a just as unique culture. To call us all by the name Native Americans is like saying we are all the same. I am a senior in high school. Today in physical education, my teacher had an activity that’s name offended me. It was called and Indian run.  Our teacher had the class line up in a line. Then we began to run around the gym in a big circle. Finally, the person at the end of the line would sprint to the front of the line. My teachers have also told me to sit Indian style, which makes no sense to me. I don’t know any of my people or any one from India who has a cultural reason for sitting cross-legged. Even my peers make comments such as “Oh those Indians are such drunks” They also whisper behind my back “There goes the girl who lives in an igloo”. For the record I live in a house just like they do.

Teachers need to remember always that they have a diverse classroom. The author of Brave Warrior states that certain words such as Indian warriors should be used cautiously in modern education materials. When naming activities you must also consider your students. Avoid naming your activities things like Indian run. Instead, call the activity train run or switcheroo.  Something as simple as telling students to sit Indian style can offend some students in your classroom. Instead, you can tell students to sit cross-legged. I even have heard some one refer to it as sitting criss cross applesauce. Students need to develop the most unbiased understanding of different cultures. Cultural biases such as all Inuit live in Igloos can lead to problems in the classroom. Incorporating culture into lessons can help students develop an understanding for everyone in the world around them. Culture can be incorporated into any classroom. You can make bulletin boards about a student each week. Teach students about different holidays such as Hanukah, kwanza, etc. You could even teach students about the Santa Clauses around the world. I would divide my students into groups and assign a topic about a culture for them to research and then present to the class. Understanding that your students come from a variety of different backgrounds is important to understand when developing a proper learning environment for all your students.

Reference

Koppelman, Kent L. (2011).  Perspectives on Human Differences. Boston: Pearson Education, Inc.

Development of My Educational Philosophy

Not everyone realizes that they want to be a teacher when they are growing up. I grew up wanting to be a vet. Then I actually started my college career as biology major and wanted to work in a zoo as a zookeeper.  After a year, I realized that biology was not for me and started to look for other options. Finally with some help, I decided to change my major to Elementary Education. Since I began my major, my philosophy of education has been evolving.  I guess it started with the question everyone asks. Why do you want to be a teacher?  When I began to study education I had no real answer for the question. My answer may have been I enjoy babysitting. At that time, I did not understand what a philosophy for education might be. I was still testing the water to see if education was right for me. Now that I am farther along in my Elementary Education Degree, I have a better understanding of what my education philosophy is and that education is right for me. My answer now for the question is to be the excellent teacher that all students deserve and should have so that they can reach to their highest potential.

My philosophy of education now is that all students deserve a quality education with the guidance of an excellent teacher. An excellent teacher is a teacher who strives to put the needs of their students first so that the students can succeed in the teacher’s classroom.  Students coming from any background should have all the opportunities necessary to achieve their greatest potential. A teacher must understand that all students are unique. Meaning that students have many differences and similarities. Therefore, the classrooms should not be one sided but should contain a variety of objects to address every student’s learning style.

I believe that educational philosophies should be a mixture of progressivism, perennialism, essentialism, and reconstructionism. Educations should be about the whole child as suggested in the progressivism philosophy. Students should not be treated as one because of each student’s individuality. To address every students learning style, a proper mix of educational philosophies is needed. Progressivism brings students doing activities to problem solve and learning by doing to the mix.  Perennialism teaches students about Western Civilization. Student should know about the development of Western Civilization but also should learn about a wide variety of civilizations. However like perennialism, students should understand the basics of the civilizations that will lead to more complex topics about the civilizations. Essentialism is right about there being knowledge that student should know and is essential to being a valuable member of society. But, schools should expand past the basics to more complex topics once a student knows the basics. Teachers need to teach students about societal morals. Basic knowledge and societal morals will better prepare all students for their future. Reconstructionism can help address the complex topics. Once students learn their basics, complex topics about the world around them will help them grow intellectually. Bring the world to your students by a worldly problem may help them to better understand the subject. Every student will receive a higher quality education with the proper mix of educational philosophies.