Educational Philosophy
Shannon Crowell
ETEC 524

My educational philosophy draws from my educational experiences as a student as well as my experiences as a teacher. I can easily align myself with parts of all five of the educational philosophies examined. The school of thought that I most identify with is Pragmatism. Pragmatism teaches students the skills, ideas and facts to solve real life problems.

As stated above, I subscribe to the pragmatic educational philosophy. I feel that education should teach or give skills to succeed in life. Also, education should not be stagnant. Life is always changing, therefore education methods and curriculum must change also. That being said, I subscribe to some of the concepts of Realism. I think actual things should be studied and Science is very important. As a former art teacher, we examined things to draw them and to create new things from existing objects. On the other hand, I believe that thinking and ideas are of great value to an education, so some of the Idealist tenets are part of my own educational philosophy.

I cannot state my educational philosophy without mentioning the influences of my favorite teacher. We studied the classics for Honors English in high school. Studying the classics in our time made me think and compare what went on so long ago to what is going on in our lives now. The classics are classics for a reason. They stand the test of time. They have real value in education and should not be left out of the curriculum. I guess I am pragmatic in my thought as to how the classics fit into my life and what I can learn from them.
My worst teacher shaped my educational philosophy in that he did not give us the skills needed to do Algebra II. Algebra teaches us problem solving.. Then again, I don’t use algebra in daily life, so did I really need it in the first place? What algebra does teach is how to think and that is something that we need in life. I guess I am a “cut to the chase” kind of person. Just give me the skills and information that I will need in life.

We should teach skills that will be needed in daily life, as well as, the classics, ideas, how to think and problem solve. I think that we need both. Education is made up of so many parts that all of the philosophies studied could reasonably fit in to one’s educational philosophy. The purpose of an education should be to teach students to think and to problem solve while giving them skills to succeed in life as it changes.

The teacher and the learner both have important roles to play in the educational process. They both should be active participants. A teacher should be a facilitator, not just a robot imparting information, as well as a life coach. The learner should take part in the activities provided and show an interest and individuality in their own education.

As a school librarian, my own objectives are to use technology to excite children about reading and literature and to teach them to use technology to create things, problem solve and find the information that they can use. I teach research skills using the Internet. I also promote literacy using programs that give away free stuff as rewards that can be accessed on a computer with Internet access. I teach students how to create their own books that can be published. I show videos and PowerPoint presentations, on how to do things using a computer, book reviews, web sites, digital books online and e-books in our library. Students learn how to research and how to do things on a computer.

I expect students to use the research strategies and web sites, and databases to complete assignments. I expect teachers to remind them to do this and have the website and database address posted. I expect teachers to use the information, web sites, and materials to make their lessons and activities fun and relevant to today’s technology savvy student.

In conclusion, I believe that students must have the skills and access to the technology that will help them to succeed in whatever life hands them. An education must include the classics for teaching us to think about ourselves and other cultures and should include problem-solving skills with applications to life.