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               My personal goal for my future classroom is to challenge students and watch them grow to their full potential. I want to take students that are at different levels and see them develop together as they learn from each other. Personally, I believe that all students have the opportunity to succeed. There are many different ways that people succeed in life. Whichever path you take, your education follows you wherever you go.

 

               I like to compare learning and education to the universe. Learning is like the universe, it never stops growing. We learn new things everyday in life. We learn about others, about the world and most importantly, ourselves, and who we want to be. I strongly believe that students identities are shaped by their experience in school and their teachers.

 

               I feel that I have a stand on the progressivism of education. Progressivists believe that education should focus on the child rather than the subject matter. I think the students’ interests are just as important as is integration of thinking, feeling, and doing. In order to be successful, I believe that students should learn to solve problems by experimenting and reflecting on their experiences.

 

               Our world is an ever changing place. Introducing new ideas are important to make the future better than the past. Thus, we must allow our students to do their own thinking and develop new ideas. As educators, we shouldn’t be the only ones gaining knowledge in the classroom. I want to teach students in a way that has some straightforward instruction, but also gives students room to grow and expand on their own. Learning new things as an educator is so important to your students success. When we listen to our students, we learn more about the world and how it is changing. By continuing to teach the same curriculum over and over for several decades, our students won't advance in the world and they won’t be prepared for the growing world around them.

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Maddie Peterson