Mr. Cook

Philosophy of Education

     My personal goal for my future classroom is to challenge student and watch them grow to their full potential.  I want students to have freedom that allows for expression and creativity in my history class.  I want to teach students in a way that has some straight forward instruction, but that also gives student room to grow and expand on their own knowledge of history.  It is important to help the students that I'm teaching, to achieve their full protractile.  Classroom organization is also a key concept to consider when teaching.  If students are in a classroom that is unorganized or set up in a way which hinders learning it is not a good situation for anyone.  I believe in teaching content that is meaningful, applicable and inviting to students.  In my history class, if they do not see the point of the subject matter they will not be interested in learning history.

     Students must be engaged in the learning process, it is my job as a teacher to help the students make connections to their own lives and how historical events have affected our past and into the future.  I feel that students should have the opportunity to learn beyond the text book.  Primary and Secondary sources are great tool to use when teaching history to students.  Students should also be given the opportunities to step inside their history book and act out the events portrayed in history.  I feel students will become passionate about history if they are given the opportunity to explore and act out what they are reading.  Students may also benefit from activities that allow each student to use their knowledge of history to drew their own conclusion of different events in history.

     History is more that just a textbook, more than passing a test and getting good grades on paper.  History is an ever growing, ever evolving study of history from the past to the future.  My classroom will feature thought provoking lesson for each student, allowing every student to express his or her opinions and find connection within the the textbook.  The students of today are your future, but they must understand the foundation of your past.  As a teacher it is my goal to make sure that students are not simply turning the pages in their book, but absorbing the information that will keep with them for a lifetime.