I think a teaching philosophy would be more beneficial if....

should we call it a teaching philosophy or something else? What?

How would having a working/posted philosophy be more beneficial and useful in your daily practice? Do you think knowing the history of your philosophy will help you stay grounded in your teacher identity as you face daily challenges in your teaching career?

My Teaching Philosophy Helps Me......?

Please respond:

Welcome!

I'd like to welcome you to this blog experiment. I am calling this a workshop because I'd like for us to collaboratively think about the value and use of the teaching philosophy. I am counting on return participants since I am not taking attendance or requiring an official roster. This is a blog in a virtual world. I am also asking for honest responses that are thoughtful and encourage rich discussion. If you have resources to share or citations to include please feel free to include links or actual citations (APA/MLA).

As a teacher educator at Michigan State University, I am very aware of the fact that we ask our intern teachers to develop a teaching philosophy for their portfolios. I've wondered about this process for a few years now and have my own thoughts about why we might require this document of pre-service teachers. I've also wondered how it might be more beneficial for in-service teachers or if just how serious this document is viewed in the practitioners world of education.

PLEASE RESPOND....With this in mind ~ I'd like to first hear your general thoughts about the value and use of a teaching philosophy including why we call it a teaching philosophy. Maybe there is a better name for this thing we use to define who we are as teachers?