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Philosophy of Education

The teacher demonstrates an understanding of how to promote learners’ growth and

development showing a commitment to using learners’ strengths as a basis for growth, and
their misconceptions as opportunities for learning and the recognition of the value of the
input and contributions of families, colleagues, and other professionals in understanding
and supporting each learner’s development.

Considering that one’s personal philosophy of education is so fundamental to each

educator's pedagogy, it is surprising that this is not a topic that is discussed more often. The first

time this concept came to my attention was in my first course in education, and it was not

something that came up again in my schooling until now. My personal philosophy of education

is similar now to how it was then, albeit with better understanding that gives it a more actionable

place in my pedagogy. At the time I first wrote about my personal philosophy I had been a

paraeducator for a few years, but it was my first year of teaching. I realized the importance of a

safe environment to foster student growth and learning, as well as a soft disciplinary hand. I

knew that interpersonal relationships were important, but I do not think I fully understood that

relationships between educators and students, as well as between students and their peers, was

the single most crucial factor in education, and one which the educator has a considerable

influence over. I knew there were a lot of individual factors that created a good classroom, but I

did not understand that everything boils down to connection! Because of this simplified

understanding of what makes a good class, the two biggest adjustments to my focus over the

years has been on setting up classroom expectations and routines, as well as keeping in mind

how my students may perceive me and adjusting my pedagogy accordingly. This has created

more of what Hammond would call a learning partnership, which “take(s) advantage of the fact

that our brains are wired for connection” (Hammond, 2015, p. 19). Having clear classroom

routines and procedures helps foster an environment which facilitates more positive interaction
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between the students and their peers, as well as between my students and myself. This positive

interaction between all parties is what I focus on more than anything in my classroom.

The way I go about building these positive connections focuses on two aspects- the things

I can influence without continual direct intervention, and how I come across when I am directly

interacting with students. To set up the most positive environment in my physical education

classroom I make sure to use as many best practices as possible, such as start/stop music for

activities and clear gym procedures (Grube et al. 2018). This helps assist students in knowing

what is expected of them during various portions of class, alerting them to transitions. The less

direct input from me in these instances the better, as it has been shown that the more controlling

a P.E. teacher is perceived to be by their students the worse the observed behavior (De Meyer et

al. 2014). When students self-manage their own behavior, it is a win-win, as they then do not

view the teacher as being controlling, and they are more likely to make good decisions on their

own which impacts the students around them. Because of this, it is important to have clearly

communicated expectations with students, and to provide them with non-verbal signals, as both

are low-control ways educators can cue student action. To facilitate this, I make sure my students

are familiar with procedures relating to what they do as soon as they enter the gym, what the

expectations are depending on if there is music on or no music, as well as protocols around

equipment, water/bathroom breaks, and gymnasium rules. Once set up, these factors produce a

passive environment that fosters positive interactions and thus better learning outcomes. This

was an area I spent a lot of time focused on, as I chose for my UAS research class a project

which focused on music selection’s effect on behavior in physical education. What I found

supported the importance of music in P.E., especially for students who struggled with staying on

task and making transitions in class. Just the subset of students who can benefit most from

nonverbal teaching queues.

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The second focus of my personal philosophy of education is how I try to carry myself

when interacting directly with students. As I already noted, controlling P.E. teachers are received

more poorly by their students, which leads to worse learning outcomes and behavior. There are

several things I keep in mind to limit this- I try to keep my instructional time short, I speak to the

class from a closer distance than I used to, I work to maintain good eye-contact, and I model

positive social emotional learning concepts (Hovdal et al. 2020; López Jiménez et. al. 2016). I

know that a single incident in which a student perceives their teacher as overbearing can forever

taint their view of me (De Meyer et al. 2014), so I do my best to deal with students in a way that

they view as fair and relaxed. I do my best to be positive and energetic, and to not show

frustration when I feel that way. There are times when individuals or the class do not meet my

own behavior standards; these are great moments for teaching. I do my best to use these times to

model calm, respectful behavior while clearly communicating expectations. It is a good tie-in for

physical education, as people learn best through continuing to try when they fall short, which is

something we talk about a lot in class. Another way I like to show the students respect is by

giving them autonomy and choice in class. Although I have not developed every lesson and unit

to allow for this, my most successful classes facilitate student choice. They either have options

on how to participate, or even on what that day's class is going to look like. This choice has been

shown to increase student participation and buy-in (Howley & Tannehill 2014), and it further

fosters the learning partnership that Hammond (2015) supports.

Connection creates community as a byproduct. My personal philosophy of education,

therefore, focuses on community, which means I allow for and welcome student input. It also

means that I have looked for professional input from colleagues which would lead to a greater

classroom community in my gym. During my administration performance reviews, my principal

seeks my input on what I would most like to focus on for coaching growth. I have always asked
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for critiques on how to better manage my classroom and create better lesson flow, which

contributes to positive student interactions. While I do not have as much interaction with the

student’s families and community as would a homeroom teacher, I have still managed to reach

out through News Notes and occasional fliers home. As I continue my professional development,

I look forward to seeing how my personal philosophy of education grows and becomes more

refined, but I feel happy about the direction it has taken and where I am right now.
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References

De Meyer, J., Tallir, I. B., Soenens, B., Vansteenkiste, M., Aelterman, N., Van den Berghe, L.,

Speleers, L., & Haerens, L. (2014). Does observed controlling teaching behavior relate to

students’ motivation in physical education? Journal of Educational Psychology, 106(2),

541–554. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0034399

Grube, D., Stu, R., Lowell, S., & Stringer, A. (2018). Effective classroom management in

physical education: Strategies for beginning teachers. Journal of Physical Education,

Recreation & Dance, 89(8), 47-52. https://doi.org/10.1080/07303084.2018.1503117

Hammond, Z. (2015). Culturally responsive teaching and the brain. Corwin.

Hovdal, D., Larsen, I., Haugen, T., & Johansen, B. (2020). Understanding disruptive situations in

physical education: Teaching style and didactic implications. European Physical

Education Review, 27(3). https://doi.org/10.1177/1356336X20960498

Howley, D., & Tannehill, D. (2014). “Crazy ideas”: Student involvement in negotiating and

implementing the physical education curriculum in the Irish senior cycle. Physical

Educator, 71(3), 391–416. https://search-ebscohost-

com.ezproxy.uas.alaska.edu/login.aspx?direct=true&db=eue&AN=103298741&site=edsl

ive&scope=site

López Jiménez, J., Valero‑Valenzuela, A., Anguera, M., & Díaz Suárez, A. (2016). Disruptive

behavior among elementary students in physical education. SpingerPlus, 5(1154).

https://doi.org/10.1186/s40064-016-2764-6