Reflection: Philosophy of Teaching I have developed my current philosophy from my educational experience at Manhattan College as well as both my student

teaching experiences. After my undergrad experience of student teaching at P.S. 2 ! I developed the philosophy that teaching needs to be student oriented where the teacher is the facilitator. At this school! the population of students were very easy to wor" with. My first placement was a gifted and talented fourth grade class and my second was a general education second grade class. #hese students came to school with a desire to wor" and learn. #heir basic needs were being met at home and because of this! their main priority at school was learning. $or my graduate student teaching placement! I student taught at P.S.%M.S. &'. #he population in this school and in my classroom was very different from that of P.S. 2 . #his is because it was a special needs setting and many of the students did not come from the most affluent areas. (ecause of this! the priorities of these students were very different from that of P.S. 2 . (ecause my placement at P.S.%M.S. &' is a special needs setting! many of the students lac"ed basic reading and writing s"ills that were fundamental for their third grade classroom. )ften times! they would enter the classroom dreading copying their do now and starting their day! "nowing that reading and writing are essential pieces. #his being said! students did not necessarily become excited over learning and were not as eager to study! as were my students from more affluent areas. (oth my student teaching experiences have formed and shaped my *ducational Philosophy Statement. +earning needs to be student oriented. *ach student learns in his or her own way! therefore teachers need to be flexible and accommodating to each student. #hese educational experiences for each student form who they we will become. (ecause of this! social s"ills must also be taught in the classroom along with academia. In order for students to have a sense of belonging in the classroom! they need to have a voice. My philosophy suggests giving students this voice through encouraged participation! free time! group wor"! shares! etc. (ecause school is such a ma,or part of each student-s life! it is essential that they can express themselves academically as well as socially. Above all! my philosophy suggests that teachers need to ensure that all studentsfundamental needs are met. If not! they will not have a desire for academics or have a willingness to learn. )nce their basic needs have been met! there will be more room for learning. *very classroom needs to be designed around the students. .uring my student teaching experiences! I have observed that students do have a desire to learn! however they need a teacher as the facilitator to ensure that this happens. #eachers need to be ,ust that/ a facilitator where learning is student centered. $rom student teaching in both a general and special education setting! I have learned that every student has a different learning style and because of this! teachers need to be aware and accommodating. My undergrad and graduate student teaching experiences essentially formed my *ducational Philosophy Statement. *ssentially! in order for a class to have successful learning experiences! teachers need to be aware of each student-s basic needs and accommodating to both their academic and social learning.