My Philosophy on Education

“The problem isn’t that the (deaf) students do not hear. The problem is that the hearing world does not listen,” said Reverend Jesse Jackson. As a future deaf educator teaching secondary education with an emphasis in English, I know I will not be guilty of not listening. Instead I will focus on hearing my students through classroom management, learning styles, and diversity.

I am confident that with my classroom management the students will understand I am not simply there to support them academically, but also emotionally. However, students will be aware that I am not there to be their “pal” but their teacher. I will continue to be there emotionally for students, but I will not allow students to become too friendly nor will they have firsthand knowledge of my personal life. I will do this by showing the students I care by rewarding excellent behavior with messages to parents through e-mails or personal phone calls. On the other hand, school rules will apply to all students. Rules such as having students keep eye contact with me while I lecture or write notes on the white board is an example. Another rule would be to always be prepared by bringing supplies such as paper, pen and notebook, and that homework is finished for each class. Consequences will be determined based on the rule not followed. For instance, when a student loses eye contact throughout the class I will ask the student to go out to the hallway to have a conversation with the student. I will then try to figure out what may be going on with the student and discourage their current behavior. To reward students who demonstrate correct writing skills, I will use signed English to read their papers so other students can understand excellent examples through a peer’s writing. Consequently, students will feel appreciated and successful while in the classroom. I will listen to my students if they have questions about an assignment or a concept we are covering in class, as I will continue to pay attention to their learning styles.

I will be teaching students that are deaf or hard-of-hearing whose learning styles will focus more on visual and kinesthetic, although some may be auditory. Being versatile will not only benefit the students in their academics but keep things fresh in the classroom. I will use Signed English/American Sign Language as a visual after writing on the board, for all my students. Kinesthetic activities will include role playing a scene from a play and/or story, so students will have the opportunity to enjoy what is being taught through a physical activity. For example student groups would read from a skit for a scene in Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet, or Much Ado About Nothing, teaching the rest of the students what the story was about. Auditory learners tend to test better orally so for vocabulary and spelling tests, students will perform those test orally (signed/finger spelled). For example, students will stand to perform a vocabulary pre-test. Calling on different students for different vocabulary words to define will give all the students a chance to earn 10 points. Students will have a possible ten points for every pre-test by answering the question with the correct answer the first time. As a result, I will reach students with different leaning styles to provide the best learning environment that the students will be successful in. Within the first couple of weeks I will be listening to the students to determine what learning style will best fit for each teenager individually. I will also be listening to my students for any given chance to teach diversity.

I know that my classroom will be extremely diverse not only in the students hearing capability but their culture, economics and other social issues they may have. Because the class will be diverse, I will prepare students through Language Arts by writing and reading about influential people that have/had similar diverse issues. Short stories based on Helen Keller who was deaf/blind, and/or I. King Jordan: Deaf President Now, the protest that demonstrated that students can make a difference when they stand together. (I. King Jordan, who was Deaf, became the president of Gallaudet University with a student movement, Deaf President Now.) By having students read about influential people, it will illustrate to them that although they may not be able to hear, they too can do great things. As a result, students will comprehend that each person in the world is unique and they too can be successful no matter what diverse issue they believe is holding them back.

I firmly believe that with so many social issues such as violence, sexuality, health and fitness, substance abuse and dropping out; students need to understand that as a teacher I will support and help them as much as possible. I will do this by listening to students and when asked, provide as much general advice as I can possibly offer to the students or refer them to the school counselor. I will abide by the policies of reporting abuse to the correct authorities, whenever I am informed that abuse is happening. By discussing social issues through Language Arts, there are possibilities of providing answers and support to students going through the same social issues. For example having different students every couple of weeks become a “Dear Abby” reporter while the rest of the students write in about whatever “problem/issue” they are willing to share with an anonymous peer. For instance, an anonymous student writes a letter to “Dear Abby” about a family problem such as a sibling rivalry. Another anonymous student will respond to the letter giving advice through writing an article with proper writing skills. Throughout the year, students will enhance their writing skills and receive answers to questions they may ask in the course of “Dear Abby.” With that, I will support my students to the best of my abilities while abiding policies of education and enhancing writing skills by truly listening to my student’s thoughts on life and diversity through their writing.

My students may not be able to actually hear what is going on around them, and I am determined to be their ears when they cannot hear, but never their mouths. I will encourage my students to use their mouths (hands) and show the world what they can truly do with their writing. I am committed to providing the best possible learning environment that is both engaging and knowledgeable, the kind of class that will not only empower them to do well in English, but in life.

The Connection with a Religion

I was raised in a home that participated in a Christian society. We practiced it with holidays, church on Easter and Christmas and the morals of right and wrong. My mom’s family was really into the church activities every Sunday, were my dad’s family really wasn’t’ into the whole “practicing religion thing.” My sister and I would go with my mom and her family when she wanted to go, but we never really had a deep connection with the church during my childhood. Growing up, some people would call my dad atheist and at times I believed them. It was not until later that I learned my dad was not atheist, he just had an issue with organized religions and would not participate in any one church or denomination of the Christian faith. My childhood was not focused on religion but more the understanding of morals and the beliefs of the Christian faith.

When some kids have to go to Sunday school and partake in a religious activity, I would be volunteering with my mom at different organizations helping people. At the time, I didn’t understand that my mom was teaching me what being a Christian was truly about. I just knew that my mom had this obsession with helping people and volunteering our family for different activities. But truly, she was laying down the foundation of the idea that serving others before yourself is a much greater thing to do. Now, I find myself volunteering and doing “good deeds” just because, and other people tend to think of volunteering as too time consuming, where I think, what better thing to do, then serve others with ones time.

My view on women during my childhood was focused more on my mom and how she portrayed herself to me then a certain religion aspect. It was never said that the women’s job was to take care of the kids while the man carried the financial burden, but in a way that is what my family lived. My dad’s opinions did not exceed my mom’s, they worked together equally in the house/family. My mom showed us that a women’s job was to love her children, no matter what. She started laying down the bricks of my foundation of women’s rights by saying it was my duty to never back down from a fight when I boy said I could not become a firefighter because I was a girl. It wasn’t really about wanting to become a firefighter, but more the thought that a boy told me I can’t do something because I was a girl that made my mom sit me down and have my first conversation on the rights of women. (It also doesn’t help when my great-great grandma partook in the fight for women’s voting back in the day)

Over time things have changed, parents divorced, moving, graduations and deaths have changed my family tremendously. One of my biggest changes personally have to be my faith in God. Which is why I found it surprising when I received my results from the two surveys I took regarding my faith. For example the Belief-O-Matic results were Reform Judaism, Orthodox Quaker and Orthodox Judaism. It could be because I based my answers not on my religion and how it “should” be answered but my own personally beliefs. For example I know some people in certain Christian faiths are extremely anti-pro-choice and/or homosexuals, were my views are for both of them. While on the Spirituality survey I scored a 79, meaning I am a questioning believer. I guess I would be considered a questioning believer to some that go by what the bible says directly and not reading the in-betweens. What I truly question is when people that say they are Christian and then say God hates _____. I have a hard time believing God hates certain people, when He made them a certain way. But like I said, I am learning and pursuing an actual relationship with God now and understanding that being a Christian, isn’t always easy.

In 2008 I was baptized into the Christian faith and started my journey as a Christian. Growing up I was learning the fundamentals, but now I am taking those fundamentals and actually doing something with them. To understand the history of my faith now, I have to go back to 2008 when I spent more time in black than any other color. In that year alone, I went to five funerals all for people (friends/family) under the age of 22. That year I went into, what the doctors labeled as Major Depressive Disorder. My small town doctor also was a member of my church and told me to read a couple pages of the Bible a day when I start having “bad thoughts.” I went along with it and actually started to pay attention to what I was reading. I got sucked into it and started to have conversations with my family on God.

That summer I was baptized. The next year I held my cousins hand as she died of a brain tumor at the age of 22. The thing was, earlier that morning I remember praying to God asking Him to take away her pain. I guess He did it the only way He could. Unlike my dad that has a hard time with God, I did not question the “whys,” but more on what I learned from my cousin. My family and friends tell me I have come a long way from 2008 regarding my faith, and I have to smile and thank my doctor for that because without his idea of reading parts of the bible during my M.D.D. I would not have taken the path in my faith.

Since my childhood I have made a connection with a religion. Christianity. It was not that I wasn’t a Christian before, I just did not practice it and have a real connection. Ever since 2008 I have looked to my faith for answers when I needed help. Because it’s not only about identifying myself with a religion but having the connection and understanding of it that makes it your own.