This assignment is about education and teaching with philosophy
Running head: Why I Choose Teaching1 Why I Choose Teaching2 Why I Choose Teaching Danielle Keller National Louis University In America, going to school is a staple for students from the time that they are young until they graduate from high school. Having a teacher that is passionate about what they are teaching about is a major key to a student’s success. When I was growing up, I did not think twice about what it really takes to become a teacher. There is a lot more work and emotions that go into this career. As I continue throughout college and into teaching, I will always be learning how to be a better teacher and a better person in general. In elementary school, I refused to do my homework or study because I did not think that school was important. Not doing this created a lot of problems for my study habits in the future. A major memory from this time was that I had to stay in for recess most days to do the homework that I did not complete the night before. Every time I did not complete an assignment and stayed inside, there were the same students who sat against the wall to do it. Looking back at my habits, I have noticed that when I become a teacher, I would want to help the students who were like me in school and did not do their homework. I understand that there might be something else going on in the student’s life and I want to be there for them. Having that connection with a student can make drastic changes in their school life and completely change their ideology of what school is supposed to be. When I got to middle school, my parents wanted me to try more in school and it was difficult because of my poor study habits. When I tried to study, I would get terrible grades and my teachers did not like me because they thought that I was lazy. The real reason that I did not do well was because of the lack of practice on how to study because I didn’t study in elementary school. This put an emotional damper on liking school. My parents forced me to keep on trying throughout school and I started to get better habits as I got through eighth grade. I was put into a class in middle school that helped me get the correct tools that I needed to get study properly. I had realized that this class helped me and it confused me as to why other students were not getting taught these. It made me realized that I wanted to let everyone know about these study tools that made it a lot easier for me. Students need these study tools throughout school because their studies and interests will always be changing and so are their thought prosses. Having different ways for students to be able to study and to get motivated to go to school would have more motivation for these students to show up to school more often. I was a part of my community in high school. I started joining teaching classes such as the preschool and the special education classes in high school. My teachers for those classes let me have a lot of leadership in both classrooms and gave me tools that they have learned themselves over the years. I tried my best to keep my home life and my school life separated as much as possible. Something that was very difficult for me was when my parents had started their divorce while is was in high school. This had made me a stronger person and helped me give a different outlook in life but during that time, I tried to look for an outlet to keep my mind off of it. It made me grow up and be more independent. While my parents were dealing with their stuff, I decided to look out for myself and to decide what I want to do with my life. My parents wanted me to go to college to pursue what I wanted to do. Growing up, I was expected to go to college like both of my parents had. My dad had gone into business and my mom was a fifth-grade teacher. When it had come to my junior year of high school, I was starting to think about my future and what I wanted to do. I had the option to pursue what I wanted to do because my parents let me choose what I had wanted to do. My mom had gone to National Louis University for her master’s degree for teaching and that is where I learned about this school and decided I was going to apply. I did not apply to any other schools because I had realized that I did not want to be too far away from home during college. When I was younger, I was very introverted, and I had a difficult time talking to people and in front of a class. When I was younger and knew that I wanted to become a teacher, I was petrified because I knew that I had to talk in front of the class. I have a lot of anxiety and most of it is social. As I have been forced to be in front of people and do my presentations for school, this forced me to have more confidence in what I was talking about. When I had gotten to college, I decided to try and get out a little bit more and talk to my classmates to get more comfortable. As I started getting more connections and feeling comfortable, presenting in front of my class, feeling my connection with my peers helps my confidence and my anxiety. Running head: EDUCATION AND SCHOOLING 1 EDUCATION AND SCHOOLING 2 Purpose of Education and Schooling Dani Keller National Louis University Purpose of Education and Schooling Education is one of the social pillars that can effectively influence the development of a society. Education promotes development from an individual’s and nation’s perspectives. Society may have different views on which form of education they use, but the end-goal should be the same; that all forms of education should promote self-sufficiency and also the development of the whole society. An educated population is informed and can be able to make better decisions than the uneducated group. Therefore, a society that wants to develop always invests in education as a way of solving its challenges, whether political, social, or political. Education is, therefore, considered as a sub-system of the society that performs some significant functions for society as a whole. As such, I teach because education offers me an opportunity to train learners in skills that can enable them to contribute to finding solutions to the social, political, and economic challenges that their community faces as well as promote their individual personalities. Education and schooling play an important role in the lives of individuals, especially in preparing learners to live a purposeful life. Different philosophers have explained the purpose of education and schooling in an individual’s life. The ancient philosophers, like Aristotle, Plato, and Confucius, contributed extensively to understanding the important roles of education and schooling. According to Noddings (1995), these early thinkers shared a common idea about the reason why schools exist and what they do. Despite writing from different perspectives, each of these thinkers highlighted the importance of education, including promoting self-fulfillment to the learner (Reed & Johnson, 1996). The purpose of education and schoolings on an individual’s life is to prepare them to live independently and also to live as members of society. Education is a platform that provides and equips learners with the necessary skills to survive in the world. Idris et al. (2012) define education as “a change in man’s conduct of life” (p. 444). This means education and schooling upgrades an individual’s ability to chose the best alternatives available in any circumstances they face in their daily lives. Education, therefore, prepares an individual to engage in the best approaches to any problem at any given time (Idris et al., 2012). Education and schooling also foster and transmits important and accepted values in the learners. According to Idris et al. (2012), education helps in building values that help in determining behaviors, attitudes, and reactions of responsible citizens. This means that someone who has received education or gone to school should demonstrate the highest level of good behavior because they have learned about the importance of those values in school. Therefore, as a teacher, my role is to inculcate these values through education. As a teacher and educator, I have to ensure that my students are equipped with the skills necessary to enable them to participate in the social life of their different communities as well as enable them to change the nature of social order as they deem so. Building their social life will help them become better members of society. Education and schooling also play a great role in society as a whole. According to Idris et al. (2012), education is considered to be a systematic effort that helps in building up society. Türkkahraman (2012) further explains that the society has a significant role in determining the function of education. However, when examining the relationship between education and society, Türkkahraman (2012) asserts that the main feature is the communal side. In that sense, society cannot exist without education and vice versa. Education does not only impact the individual life of the learner, but it affects the whole community where he or she comes from, beginning from his family (Türkkahraman, 2012, p. 38). This means that raising an adequate number of people who have gone to school can have a great impact on the society’s development. Education assists society by promoting its development and desired change. According to Türkkahraman (2012), education can promote change in many ways beginning with the structure of the community through socio-economic policies. From this perspective, education promotes adevelopment from both the economic and educational process. According to Türkkahraman (2012), development and change do not occur from anything. Something must exist that triggers the change and pushes for the change. In this case, education has been considered to be the greatest force of change in society. Change does not only involve economic growth. Türkkahraman (2012) explains that education transforms society through the improvement of social conditions and expectations. In achieving the above impacts, both students and educators (teachers) must play their roles effectively. Learning is an interactive process where both students and teachers must interact through their different roles to achieve education goals effectively. As a teacher, my roles include teaching knowledge, creating a learning environment for learners, and mentoring the learners. In teaching knowledge and passing the content to the learners, teachers must choose the right pedagogy, which includes the student-based learning method. According to Keiler