ALEXIS CAMISA

      A teacher who gives students opportunities to experiment their own interests is an effective teacher. Giving students options gives them a voice and freedom to express themselves through the particular subject matter. History, heritage, and tradition are important to incorporate in the classroom setting (Balangee, 2001). An effective teacher should give students a larger perspective on the importance of diversity and how those cultures shape our lives. A multicultural school reform that helps students see the importance of ALL people, and to be able to understand cultural complexity is a goal every teacher should have (Ballangee, 2001). A teacher should also be open-minded to change because it is important to accept and understand that the world is always progressing, and it is crucial to be flexible and adjust curriculums accordingly. A goal every teacher should have is to guide kids to envision a world of global cooperation and not global competition.

 

     A quote I live by is, “Children are not coloring books. You do not get to fill them out with your favorite colors.” (Khaled, 2012). This is an extremely important philosophy for every teacher to live by; to accept that not one kid is like the other, and to accept each student for who they are. Getting to know your students is extremely important because a student’s personal life outside of the classroom will affect the student they are inside of the classroom. It is important as a teacher to know the demographics in which they are teaching in. Unfortunately, teachers may come across students who are in poverty. It is important to help students who live in unjust households and struggle with poverty emotionally, academically, and if possible, financially. It is the teacher’s job to dramatically expand the opportunities these students do not currently have through education. Using the subject we teach to our advantage in changing poor situations for the better, should be a teacher's mindset.

 

    As for arranging the structure and space of a classroom, it is important for the teacher to provide an environment that is inspiring to students. An environment for organized group activities as well as individual work. A group setting approach makes room for students to think flexibly, engage in conversation and collaboration, and for them to be open to many possibilities. However, we should also leave room for independent work. Visual thinking strategies sanction students to collect their views and think about how they are going to approach and explain the subject. Likewise, making them sharper observers of the world around them. Consequently, this will help create different forms of learning and education approaches in the classroom.

 

     It is important to understand that as a teacher we are working with children and we must have our morals in place. In other words, we must consider our morals, and only obtain noble ones. Teachers should be role models and figures of guidance, and not solely an educator of a subject. Although we may love the subject we are teaching, we must love the children even more. If a teacher has no passion or love for children, then they are in the wrong profession.

 

    I believe teachers should encourage students to learn to present their own thoughts and ideas, the importance of respecting others and learning from the perspectives of their fellow classmates. Teachers should stretch the importance of the use of one’s eyes to make sense of the world (Salomon, 2016). They should gear students into looking around, reasoning, and to configure what is truly going on in the world around them. I also believe as a teacher, you should always be an advocate. In other words, be an advocate for yourself, your profession, and your students. You must never stop advocating for proper funding for your subject. It is crucial that teachers always advocate for special education student’s needs to be met as well. We must make sure they are provided with all the necessary resources they need in order to perform to the best of their abilities in their academics. Teachers should know if they need to talk/teach/provide for a certain student differently than they would with other students in the class.

 

    I believe that in order for a teacher to truly be successful, a teacher must dedicate the time and work not only inside the school but outside of school. They can do so by volunteering, inviting parents and other teachers from their community for insight and support, organize meetings, show up at a meeting where people are making budget decisions, build on what is already working, and most importantly…take a stand!

 

    There is truly a reason as to why I chose the major of Art Education and the minor of Technical Theatre at Adelphi University. The reason being is because I feel that it is my duty to spread awareness for the arts in education and to prove to school systems that art is indeed beneficial and crucial to a student’s success in a receiving a complex education. The duty of every teacher should be to spread awareness of the importance of the subject matter they are teaching and to make sure every child regardless of their disability, race, gender, etc., is given a complex and fulfilling education. Every teacher should be willing to put in any necessary effort to make a students’ education better. I am very passionate about the field of education and believe that you cannot build a student for the future if you take the arts out of the picture. Let’s not forget that art is certainly a “universal language spoken by all people”, and a child's education is not complete unless it includes the arts!

 

References

 

Ballengee-Morris; Patricia L Stuhr. (2001). Multicultural art and visual cultural education in a changing world

 

Khaled Hosseini. (2012). the kite runner. Harlow: Pearson Education.

 

Xavier Salomon. (2016) the art of Guido Cagnacci. The Frick Collection, in association with Scala Arts Publishers, Inc.