Kim Ingraham
Mrs. Ingraham's Teaching Philosophy
“What children can do with assistance of others might be, in some sense,
more indicative of their mental development than what they can do alone.”
– Lev Vygotsky
Children learn best when they are given tasks just out of reach of their present abilities. It is more important for children to learn within their zone of proximal development than it is for children to trudge through content that is too difficult or to breeze through content that is too simple. It is my task as an educator to arrange for children to engage in activities within their zone of proximal development, thereby leading to continued growth and success. Children should be challenged and should have to reach to understand while simultaneously knowing that support from their peers and teachers will be available. If we do not challenge children, how will they grow? How will they learn? If children are presented with tasks that are constantly within their frustration level, when and how will they succeed?
“For the things we have to learn before we do them,
we learn by doing them.”
– Aristotle
My philosophy of teaching is heavily influenced by Lev Vygotsky’s theory of cognitive development; however, my philosophy also draws upon John Dewey’s theory of progressivism. Children develop a deeper understanding of content when they are exposed to real, meaningful experiences and learn experientially. There must be meaning in what we do in order for us to learn. The content presented to students must appeal to them – it must speak to their different modalities and intelligences, for if they have no interest, what are they learning? Where will my lessons take them? How will I help them grow?
Everyone thinks and learns in their own unique way. To reach each child who thinks and learns differently from their peers, it is imperative to ensure activities are neither too difficult nor too simple. We have to provide opportunities for all children to learn through all modalities and strengthen their intelligences. In essence, we have to differentiate instruction, so that each child’s learning experiences are enriched and their zone of proximal development is always engaged.
“I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.”
– The Little Engine That Could
Within my philosophy, differentiated instruction, Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development, and experiential learning all work in concert toward the same goals: reaching all students, providing a passion for learning and opportunities to succeed, and heightening one’s perceived self-efficacy.
Children who perform poorly may do so not because they lack the skills, but because they lack the sense of efficacy to use their skills effectively. When children consistently fail, they are plagued with self-doubt. How can one learn when they are plagued with self-doubt? The answer is: they cannot. When I think about students who are tasked with completing the same assignment in precisely the same manner, some of those students must have self-doubt. How does this help our children grow intellectually and developmentally? This is where the beauty of differentiated instruction lies – it is not simply about differentiating lesson plans to meet the perceived needs of the students; it is about getting to know the student, so that we can differentiate instruction effectively. Once we know the student, we can determine their perceived self-efficacy and help them raise it by taking them out of their frustration level, bringing them into their zone of proximal development, and providing them with real, meaningful experiences that give substance to the content. This provides them with opportunities for success, and that is key to their education.
In short, my philosophy and mission for teaching is threefold:
1. To promote continued growth and success by ensuring all children are learning within their zone of proximal development.
2. To promote a passion for learning and opportunities to succeed by exposing children to real, meaningful experiences.
3. To reach all students and heighten their sense of efficacy through differentiated instruction, engaging all modalities and intelligences.