I am an essentialist. I believe that
teaching through direct contact with the environment and using task-oriented
projects is the most effective instructional method. Basically, my belief is
that students learn through hands-on experiences that connect subject-based
content into practical uses in everyday life. Also, I think that focusing on
today’s society rather than emphasizing on the classics is effective and more
relevant to students’ lives. The main focus of essentialism is teaching
students the basics to survive and be successful in society. I bring to
teaching a belief that current events are much more applicable to students’
lives rather than reading a novel based in a different time period with
different values. For example, Nathanial Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter
is not nearly as relevant to current classrooms because students are unable to
make connections between the novel and modern culture. Focusing on more recent
literature like The Hunger Games allows students to make connections
between current events, their own lives, and the novel. In order to be a
successful educator, I must present material in a relevant, hands-on way for
students to understand and make worthwhile connections. Although essentialists
are subject-focused, I believe that through focusing on relevant topics I will
be able to reach my students more effectively.
As an essentialist, I belief that
one way children learn is through observations in their environment. If children
learn morals by watching adults or family members in their lives, I would argue
that they have this ability to learn through observation at school as well. An
engaging lesson that allows students to observe the content rather than reading
out of a textbook allows students to draw their own conclusions, and can be
much more effective. Obviously, students learn through their environment
without acknowledging it, and I wish to bring this type of natural learning
into the classroom. One way of presenting information through this
observational theory is by providing multimedia in the classroom. Through
technological and environmental observation students will learn without
traditional textbooks and study guide assignments; the lessons will be more
engaging. Additionally, I see myself assessing student progress through
observational, informal assessments more rather drilling students with quizzes
and tests. In the classroom, I see myself giving more project-based assignments
rather than unit tests, because it is important for students to work together
as a group and overcome problems as a team. In most careers, employees are
presented with projects, not tests, and students need to be aware of group
dynamics prior to entering the work force. By observing effective group work in
school settings, students will feel comfortable in their communication and
group-work skills. Allowing students to make their own connections to the world
around them and the content areas gives ownership over their education; the
teacher is a facilitator rather than a dictator in the classroom. By observing
their environment, students will learn the content naturally.
Also, current events are more
applicable in modern day classrooms than classics. During any subject, I
believe students want to know how the information relates to their future
endeavors. If teachers cannot make the connection between the standards we have
to teach and the student’s life, the information is worthless. Without those connections
to current events, politics, and applications in careers, I do not believe that
teachers are fulfilling their job of educating young minds. I think that
learning is something that can be fun and relevant to society, but does not
require studying classic ideologies. Current events relate vocabulary and
content to the world. This is a concrete connection that students can see and
hopefully become more engaged and interested in the material being presented. I
believe that students are curious about the world around them, and by relating
topics to something concrete like current events we give students the tools to
draw their own conclusions. Additionally, information is better retained, in my
opinion, if the content areas focus on real-life scenarios. If I were to teach
a lesson on budgeting, for example, I would give students an assigned weekly
income and have them create a budget that would ideally cover bills and extra
expenses such as groceries, insurance, clothing, dining… etc. By giving the students
an actual instance of budgeting, they are forced to problem solve an ideal
budget based on their given income. Learning is through relevant experiences
such as the budgeting project, not passing a standardized test.
Overall, I believe that the main goal
any teacher has is taking a child from the known to the unknown. Through
effective teaching methods, however, the students are bound to make stronger
connections between the content and their future endeavors. I think that
teaching through task-oriented projects and hands-on experiences students will
retain a more memorable experience to learning. Not only will their learning
experience be more fun and challenging, it will prepare them for the real
world. Using current events and natural learning, students will pick up on the
material without memorizing and regurgitating information for an exam or test.
Overall I want my students to learn, not remember something long enough to pass
a test.
