My purpose in being a teacher is to help my students to
learn not just the knowledge about the subject that I teach but to prepare them
with the tools that will help them to be critical thinkers and be live long
learners. The goals I have set for my
classroom is to provide my students with a tool box of skills that will help
them to successfully reach their goals in life.
I want them to learn to question, investigate, and examine ideas for themselves
so that they can make educated and informed decisions. Although I will be having them apply these skills
hopefully to the sciences I believe it will help them to think of many different
things situations using this same set of skills. My core philosophical views are that critical
thinking skills are essential to be able to make consciences decision all
though out life. I also believe that all
students need to develop these skills by practicing them on a regular basis and
we as educators should have our students practice these skills daily by using activities
that engage this type of thinking. I
feel that this will influence my teaching greatly because I will strive include
the use of these skills as I teach my students about science and I feel that science
lends itself well to this style of thinking.
There are always things to examine and question that students will need
critical thinking skills to answer.
Hello Nicole,
ReplyDeleteI think I share your purpose and goals as a teacher. I also consider critical thinking as a key for social development. I'm partial to science, but I'll say that although it gives us a good frame work to start questioning the world, it cannot answer many difficult questions and we should keep its limitations in mind.
Nicole, I also agree with what you said about critical thinking. I think critical thinking is an important tool for people to have. I think it's important to start discussing and implementing critical thinking skills at an early age so children can start practicing it early on. I also liked the way you described skills as a "tool box", it's a perfect example of giving students what they need to solve problems.
ReplyDeleteHi Nicole!
ReplyDeleteI agree with your view on the importance of teaching critical thinking. I think that this is a valuable skill to have no matter what age. Incorporating lessons that facilitate critical thinking into your classroom is beneficial to students not only as they work through science problems but, as you said, in life. To add to this, I think critical thinking is an extremely important aspect of teaching. It is important for teachers to step back and critically evaluate their work and to be able to adapt their style and methods accordingly.
Nicole, great post! I appreciated your focus on informed decision making and critical thinking. I feel like you are very focused not just in science, but also in how to teach children how to think, how to problem solve, investigate ideas and come up with their own ideas and opinions and be informed in general. These skills are super important today and they are difficult to teach, but will last forever.
ReplyDelete