Philosophy of Learning and Teaching

Five years working as an Education Assistant with a limited authority to teach Years 6-12 at a Senior High School made me realise that the modern language teacher must be equipped to adapt themselves to a variety of different circumstances. Hence, I believe that the modern language teacher must have a range of teaching techniques drawn from a combination of behavioural, constructivist, cognitive and humanist approaches. For example, sometimes part of my language class (particularly for lower high school students) will include some simple rote learning taken from the behaviourist tradition. While in the same class I may also apply humanist approaches by giving students some autonomy over what they learn and the pace in which they learn it. However, the essence of my philosophy is grounded in constructivist and cognitive learning theory.

I believe learning happens when students are motivated and actively engaged in relevant activities and with other people. It is also essential to acknowledge that internal processes such as disequilibrium or cognitive conflict may often impede learning. I know how important it is to seek a deep understanding of my students rather than emotionally reacting to inappropriate behaviour. Supporting learners to engage with their learning and understanding the things they go through during the learning process is my key role as a teacher. Likewise, all students engage better in authentic learning activities. Authentic learning activities such as; job interviews, real-time conferencing, e-mails to overseas penfriends, and reading and creating their own comics can enhance motivation, engagement and language proficiency. However, these types of learning activities sometimes require a great deal of teacher support and guidance as each student may have a different zone of proximal development (ZDP). Hence my role is to provide the right scaffolding, questioning and open-ended activities to help all students reach their true potential.

In this way, the assessment also plays a crucial role in teaching and learning. Well designed assessments don’t only provide teachers with valuable information regarding student progress in relation to the curriculum and learning objectives but they can also provide an important window into a student’s cognitive development as well. I am in favour of using formative assessments such as; informal target language conversations, class quizzes and competitive games, to provide me with essential feedback as well as constantly pushing students to achieve more. Intern I use this feedback to make judgments regarding student progress and this knowledge allows me to apply Bloom’s Taxonomy to develop effective lesson plans.

Learners are not simply receivers but are an essential part of teaching process as well. Assessments purely designed to grade learners is not what education should be about. Rather, interacting with students in meaningful ways and using assessments as a powerful tool to inform the effectiveness of my teaching is essential to good practice. It is essential to understand students as complex individuals. Teaching is a long-term project and requires positive relationships built on trust.

Knowing when a student simply needs positive encouragement or some constructive criticism. I want students to not only develop a deeper knowledge of the required curriculum but also of themselves. I believe the teacher plays an important role in helping students understand the direct connection of effort to eventual success. I am an advocate of ‘growth mindset’ thinking and I attempt to embed this philosophy into all of my teaching. I feel that life in general is about overcoming limiting beliefs and learning how to adapt to new situations and pressures. Likewise, I must model a ‘growth mindset’ and embody lifelong learning alongside my students.