Progressive. Classical. Modern.
My teaching pedagogy is a discriminating mixture of both progressive and classical education. In a very progressive vein, I take my cues from the child. As parents, we all know that our children, whether we have one or many, are unique. We know that what works for one child does not necessarily work for another, and we make accommodations for their differences because, honestly, why wouldn’t we—we want the best for them! As an educator, I take the same approach.
Progressive
Having worked with well over 700 individual students as a classroom teacher, I’ve learned that even the “perfect” lessons still do not work for every student. Students have to be engaged; they need to have a reason to desire to continue reading, thinking, and questioning. Learning is not a passive process of absorbing information; it is an active process in which meaning is constructed from making connections, posing questions, searching for answers, and evaluating results. By working with the students, asking reflective questions and questions to push their thinking, and using their answers to craft lessons, students are active participants in their own learning. When students are active and engaged, the facts and skills important in creating a foundation for learning are actually learned, not just temporarily stored and later regurgitated on test, because there is a context and a purpose.
Classical
That deep understanding that authentically results from a context and a purpose, though, are all interrelated. When something is truly learned, a student will make meaningful connections between the arts and the sciences and our modern world and the historical world. As a parent and an educator, I want my kids to be able to make those connections on their own while I facilitate their learning. And from a very classical perspective, I want them to be able to use their learning to understand, deconstruct, and wield rhetoric. Rhetoric, the ancient art of discourse and argument, is especially important in our society. Daily we are inundated with written, spoken, and visual arguments. Studying rhetoric puts students into a greater conversation with the world because they are able to deconstruct these arguments and evaluate their effectiveness by acting in accordance what they believe to be right. The goal being that the kids become grounded in logic and hone their critical thinking skills through a rigorous course of study in order to become adults that understand the virtue of hard work, life-long learning, and living deliberately.
Modern
Education is a politically charged topic that has become about numbers, tests, and money and is straying further and further from what is best for our children and their futures. I took what started as a temporary leave from teaching when I had my first child, but decided on a permanent leave when I realized that the changes just beginning were not in the best interests of our children and education as a whole. By recognizing students as individuals, taking the time to assess where each student is academically, and developing lessons to fit each student’s needs, I strive to help students hone their critical thinking skill in order to challenge their world with logic and discover what makes them intrinsically motivated to learn. Education needs to adapt to include a worldview full of ever-changing technology, increasing scientific discoveries, and rapidly published thoughts and opinions. Studying the world from a classical view based in logic while drawing from the progressive view of keeping the child at the center makes for a meaningful acquisition of knowledge and a life-long learner.