Personal Teaching Philosophy the Third

Things I wish to Convey to Students in my class.

Language is Magic. Do you know why? Because Language can get you what you want. A nice girlfriend? A fancy car? A kind boyfriend? A scholarship? A job with a hefty paycheck? Language can get you there.

Language can reverse time and cross space in milliseconds. Language can transport you to another galaxy. The beginning of written language is the beginning of when we know what was actually going on.

Language is not just the words you speak or the texts you tweet. It's every look, every article of clothing, every posture, every curl. Everything about you is a message that others are reading. Some are messages that you want to convey. Others are messages that might not be flattering, or downright prejudiced, and some can keep you from getting what you want.

When you are quiet, you are telling others: "I Have Nothing to Say." Silence opens the gates to prejudice and hate. Your voice is important.

You already speak several languages. You speak home language, you speak friend language, you speak school language, you speak text language. Different languages are supposed to be used in different settings. Be sure that your are using the appropriate language for the appropriate setting.

One more thing. Language should never be used to disrespect or harm another. Such will not be tolerated in this class.

Personal Teaching Philosophy, Part II

If I were to teach, 

The first thing I'd preach

Is Do No Unleash Your Hate

That is one thing I will not tolerate. 

I'd say there is no shame in mediocrity, 

That when you lift another to your level

One brother at a time you raise the sea. 

...when you think of poems in the toilet, write them down on toilet paper or you'll lose the best beet poetry ever :(

Personal Teaching Philosophy

Currently I am taking two classes about teaching. One focuses almost entirely on Critical Pedagogy, while the other focuses on Classroom Management. Sometimes they appear to give conflicting advice for the same situation, which is fine. Different teachers work better using different strategies. The one thing they have in common, however, is a focus on the students. 

Classroom Management focuses specifically on what to do to maintain order in the classroom, and how to go about it. The focus is on compliance and results. 

Critical Pedagogy is vague- an incredible variety of teaching methods can be utilized under the heading "Critical Pedagogy", and as long as they work, they are generally considered valid. 

I feel like neither of these approaches to learning work perfectly for me, and I believe that's fine. Classroom management seems more attractive at first, but I envision a slightly more chaotic, creatively open atmosphere than the one that seems to be located in this paradigm.

The way Critical Pedagogy is taught, on the other hand, does not seem to be an actual practice for teaching, but rather a system of inculcating important teaching values. Listen to the students, the situation, Critical Pedagogy preaches. Learning is a democratic exercise. 

Learning might be democratic, but just because everyone has an equal right to state their opinion does not mean that everyone's opinions are equally valid. 

To me, teaching should be as fun as learning. In fact, I think the amount of interest and passion that a teacher brings to a classroom often inspires roughly equal amounts of interest and passion in the students. 

I'm a bit scatterbrained, and often use planners, files, and other organizers to help me keep it all together. I imagine I will do the same in the classroom. I love 

I'm getting off topic. 

Let me start again. 

On the Thesis

A Thesis should be
not too wide
and not too small
not to obvious
and not off the wall