2022 Educational Philosophy

Education needs to be a circular process that centers on communication. Every student has different strengths and needs, so communication is necessary to ensure that each child is being properly challenged and supported. This means communication from student to teacher, teacher to student, teacher to teacher, and student to student. Children don’t always know how to properly communicate their needs, so an effective teacher focuses on helping them build the necessary tools to express themselves. 

   For there to be communication between teachers and their students, there first needs to be trust. It’s important for students to feel safe reaching out, so when they do take that chance, they should be met with judgment-free encouragement and have their feelings and questions validated. If they don’t feel safe taking risks and making mistakes, they won’t push themselves to try new things, their comfort zones won’t expand, and they won’t be able to learn. Children need to feel not only listened to, but heard, and they need to see their feedback taken into account. This means communication on the teacher’s side, both with verbal and body language in the moment and with following up later if necessary. 

   It’s also important for teachers to clearly communicate expectations and keep them consistent. Having a clear structure and knowing what to expect can provide kids with a sense of security and ownership over their own learning. Not having those clear expectations can leave them feeling lost, confused, and potentially blaming themselves for not understanding. Creating a familiar structure that kids can operate within can provide them with a degree of independence as they learn the rules and grow their confidence. In order to keep those expectations consistent and the structure flexible enough to meet specific students’ needs, teachers have to be in constant communication with each other, from little check-ins throughout the day to carving out time for larger ones. Teachers can be incredibly useful tools and support systems for each other, but every teaching style is different. If they don’t communicate, they won’t be able to reinforce each other's work and will instead project conflicting messages, which can be confusing to the kids and disrupt their sense of security. 

   As important as it is for kids to feel heard by their teachers, they also need to learn how to communicate with their peers in order to develop socially, build confidence, and foster compassion. Having the necessary tools to express themselves to their peers can open up more sophisticated types of play and unlock new learning experiences. Having close relationships with classmates from different families can also expose them to new lifestyles and cultures and normalize a diverse range of backgrounds in their minds. 

Most young children (and even many older children and adults) don’t have the tools  to fully participate in the deep and layered levels of communication necessary for learning. Effective teaching focuses on making sure students are able to express themselves, feel heard when they do, and are able to hear others.