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Teaching Philosophy

Briauna R. Leonard

University of Georgia

ARED 2110S

Lauren Copelan

October 10, 2022

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Teaching Philosophy

The classroom should be a place where students and teachers work as a team. Far too

often, the collective belief in education is that a teacher is solely the authority figure, and the

students must blindly obey. This idea has detrimental consequences in student learning,

engagement, and success. While order and respect are needed in a student-teacher dynamic, there

are ways of finding common ground between both individuals without an extensive

establishment of power. As an instructor, creating a safe, collaborative space is a personal

priority.

One of the most important parts of education is having a safe place to learn and

communicate. Inclusivity in the classroom, regardless of background, religion, sexual-

orientation, gender, race, ethnicity, or disability, should be established from the first day of class

to the last day of class, and so on. I want to show my students that there is great importance in

who they are and where they come from, but their identity should not exclude them from

retrieving anything they want in life. On my end, I hope to build a connection with and learn

about each of my students in order to create a safe, open-minded environment, so they feel they

always have someone to confide in. This can be done individually or as a group. Talking about

and setting the boundaries of each student would be a great start. Creating lesson plans that

enable students to understand and share their identities would establish an environment that

represents and acknowledges who the students are and where they come from. This objective can

be satisfied by simply having the students create a mock portfolio with art made or taken from

their culture or background, a short biography, and a list of things they want the class or myself

to know about them.

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As mentioned previously, not every student is the same. The same sentiment can be said

about a student’s learning abilities: many students are different types of learners. For some, the

right method of learning is not always known at the start of education. As a student, I had to

explore different techniques of learning before I found one that coincided well with my

educational success. That being said, a certain method of learning for one student might not work

for another. In school, I was often forced to develop educational skills in a way that did not make

the most sense to me. For example, where I am a more visual learner, auditory lessons did not

resonate with me. I would like to help my students discover the method of learning most suited

to them by creating various visual, auditory, kinesthetic, and reading/writing assignments. I

believe creating groups or sections designated to each area of learning and allowing my students

to choose the group that they are most comfortable with will aid in their educational process and

overall success, as well as make the most out of their valuable time. For example, one

assignment could be geared to all learning types: with a given object or theme, the students could

choose to create a visual art piece, perform, record a video or sound, or write a story

representative to that object or theme. I believe by implementing various methods of learning in

the classroom, I will learn various ways to teach and better suit my students.

Throughout education, I have learned that a teacher can make or break a class depending

on how enthusiastic they are about what they teach. There have been many times where a course

on an interesting topic has become dull and tedious due to a teacher or professor being tired of

what or who they teach. I hope to project my enthusiasm for art and learning onto my students.

One way to keep my class engaging would be to produce activities that are interactive and

meaningful to the students in addition to ones that will stick with them for the rest of their lives.

In order to create assignments geared toward my students, I would love to have one-on-one
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conversations with them about what is important to them and what they want to do in life.

Perhaps have classroom discussions based on what is liked and not liked throughout the year, in

terms of assignments, communication, and experiences. However this is executed, my main goal

is to design lesson plans that are fun and engaging to my students that will encourage them to

continue wanting to learn.

It was not so long ago when I was a primary and secondary school student. My initiation

into the art world was quite unbalanced, as I was thrown into a world where I had no previous

knowledge and was expected to know about my skills and limits before I had really discovered

my identity. In the classroom, I want to help students understand that their identity and

boundaries are just as important, if not more important, to their art making as well as life in

general. One should not be expected to know the art game before they know themselves. This

creates unnecessary pressure and underdeveloped work. The main goal and focus of becoming a

teacher should be to make students comfortable with themselves and their abilities, along with

encouraging room to grow and explore. This can be done by establishing an even playing field.

We as educators are learning just as much as they are.