Introduction
Education is among the treasured gifts an educator may offer to students and under any situation, no one may take away the education of an individual. As a teacher, I am responsible for changing the world I live in today and transforming the future of learners. My special education philosophy derives from personal experience, observations, and workshops I have had a chance to attend, and not from teaching in the field. I have gotten a chance to work with people with special needs in many diverse environments, and this assisted in cultivating my skills and knowledge to deal with the needs of students with special needs. The students can function, learn, grow, and most significantly succeed in life. However, the distinction comes in the way they learn or how they should be taught. The paper explains how I will integrate Alliant’s IMPACT values into my professional practice as a special education teacher and my philosophy of education.
Incorporating Alliant’s IMPACT Six Core Values
The philosophy of educators has been shaped by key political, historical, and legal occurrences that have affected their perspectives on education. Therefore, my goal as a professional educator is to offer students a quality education. The goal may be accomplished by adhering to Alliant’s IMPACT values by incorporating them with my educational philosophy to offer the best quality learning to special needs students. Every child has a right to get sufficient knowledge without experiencing any form of discrimination and special needs children are not exempted. Special needs students are featured with learning disabilities that prevent them from attaining normal education as other students (Alliant Intl University, 2022). Hence, special education assists them in positively acknowledging their disabilities and acts to improve their self-esteem.
Consequently, Alliant’s IMPACT six values offer a blend of life-field experience and classroom academic models that assist students in becoming agents for creative transformations and solving a real-world issue that exists in the current diverse world. Hence, I will use the values to expose students to opportunities and assist them in accomplishing their objectives and goals by offering them knowledge and skills on how to handle modern-day education issues. I will employ the values to assist and guide the students so that they understand the widespread themes that create the classics relevant to them. The six core values comprising inclusion, mentorship, passion, accountability, communication, and teamwork will serve as the basis for my educational philosophy for special education students (Alliant Intl University, 2022). I will employ them in offering activities and instruction that focus on the values and assist learners to attain self-awareness and self-esteem in how they study.
Furthermore, as people put it, “disability is not inability”, which similarly implies that children having special needs must get sufficient knowledge and skills by utilizing the correct tools and relevant teaching mode. As a teacher, I have often had an inner compassion for my learners that drives me toward their inspiration. I accomplish this by guaranteeing that the students having special needs are not disadvantaged in the class. Thus, through IMPACT values, I demonstrate my values and beliefs to ensure quality knowledge management to special needs learners.
Alliant’s IMPACT Values on Special Education
Inclusion
In my personal philosophy and professional practices inclusion fits into the disability categories and theories. Inclusion is part of Alliant’s IMPACT six core values, and as a professional educator in special education, I am looking forward to incorporating my educational philosophy to influence students with the value. The study of educational models and protuberant educational philosophers such as Vygotsky Bozkurt and Piaget allowed me to understand how students may flourish in the educational setting(Stevens-Fulbrook, 2020). Vygotsky and Piaget have influenced my success in the manner that I can use both theories to comprehend when and how the student needs to be taught.
Furthermore, with inclusion, I am planning to never leave any learner out in learning. As a teacher who was left out of, there are several aspects of school, I need to ensure that I give all my learners the same amount of attention regardless of their learning disabilities. I will not care whether they are of different gender if they have a low or high social status, if they have a disability, or if they do not speak well. In my class, everybody is welcome at no cost. I desire to ensure every student feels welcome in a bully-free surrounding. Subsequently, I want to be the person that my learners want to be when they grow up in life.
Further, I have to take a careful strategy in evaluating program students, keeping the focus on general potential skills, and intellectual capabilities in communication. In doing so, I will be creating an inclusive and diverse student body in the class. The experience I have had through workshops and seminars has helped me consider class work in a more inclusive and justice-centered way. As a special education teacher, I am committed to inclusive excellence, and my dedication to diversity benefits every student at the school (Johnson et al., 2018). I came to realize that being inclusive of all learning abilities and styles helps to influence all the students in the class
Mentorship
Mentorship in my philosophy of education fits into the individual education plan for special needs students in school. In the special education classes, I want to reveal to the special needs students that I can be their mentor and guarantee their success in the future. Further, I have made it my mission to bridge the online classes and truly support and link each learner in her courses with dedication and commitment to guide learning and develop an enriching and supportive environment. I value supporting up-and-coming students by leading their demonstration via advocacy and research as a strong mentor. I consistently converse with my students, I am readily available to respond to questions, brainstorm concepts, and class projects, and often take the additional step to support my learners with special needs.
Moreover, I have the dedication to my learners’ access to coursework that may assist them in becoming more culturally and well-rounded responsive experts outweighed any individual need for special learners. I desire to be an impactful model to my students. As a special education teacher, there is a need to be a strong mentor as, I value supporting and better students in the future (Johnson et al., 2018). My values have enabled me to compassionately support and listen to my learners via their issues while at the school.
Passion
Passion in my philosophy of education fits well into my inclusion and inclusive instructional practices because I can care for all students based on their disability categories. Following my philosophy of education, teaching provides me a chance to continue learning and growing. My hope as a professional teacher in special education is to instill the love of study in my students, as I share my passion for studying with them (Phillips, 2018). When the passion of students is induced, they become motivated to work extra hard while mastering the skills and knowledge vital to attaining their goals.
I have often had a passion for teaching ever since I was a child. With time, I felt as if it had become bigger and this created me to be a special education teacher. I have demonstrated compassion and passion both in my instructional aid and my substitute work position. I mostly show much emotion for my special needs students and care to make them feel they have supportive and enriching surroundings for them to excel in their studies. I have shown my love for special needs learners through my readiness to serve them and ensure they excel in their future lives (Alliant Intl University, 2022). I am good at bringing intensity and enthusiasm, often finding new approaches to enhance the learner experience and establishing creative practices for growth and improvement for the students.
Further, I demonstrate authentic compassion for all that I do for my students, always being kind, respectful, and open to them. I go to high extend to assist all around me and I am passionate about my work in the special education field. I prefer being full of passion to serve my students at the special school. I persistently run and attend to the needs of my learners in a professional, timely, and enthusiastic way. My capability to be innovative and fulfill hard deadlines has significantly influenced the students’ experience. I truly care about my learners’ experiences and creating a positive influence on their educational expeditions. I care about each of my learners individually.
Accountability
Accountability as a value of IMPACT fits in my educational philosophy under the individual education plan, FBAs, and BIPs, because special needs children require high standards to attain better education success. I have learned that to inspire special needs learners, there is a need to watch over them beyond my measure by ensuring all their needs are met, offering guidance, and solutions in areas above my expertise, and guaranteeing resolutions are attained. Through dispute resolution practices I have learned, that I can provide solutions to the problems they experience among themselves and others in society. My help and efforts are geared to offer information in such a pleasant way to students. I employ my knowledge and experience to train and educate my students to be successful in life. I have to ensure to reach out to each student and ensure everybody is on track.
Further, I have learned to hold students and myself accountable, empowering ownership for their work. I have persistently focused on doing what is best for the learners and my work ethic and openness in assessing various ways to do things drive success and efficiency in special education. This follows through the special education history and law that uphold this field to continue influencing knowledge to many students. I have to consider both FBAs and BIPs in ensuring that students with special needs are well served in their respective capacities in school. As a teacher, I have to maximize my class time and assessment tests, teach learners to perform content analysis and create memory palaces (Alliant Intl University, 2022). Even take them to parks and local zoos to explore ways of ensuring sustainability, all with constructive and meaningful feedback.
Communication
Communication in my philosophy of education for special needs students fits in the inclusion, dispute resolution, and inclusive instructional practices. I have demonstrated to communicate freely and openly when it comes to matters to do with management, parents, and learners. In addition, to become a great special education teacher, I have to have better communication skills and ensure that I can resolve tough situations. Further, communication is a value that must be integrated into special education learning. My educational philosophy as, a special needs teacher involves establishing a good rapport with my students, contingent on mutual respect and trust, and setting the tone for a classroom community. Besides, I have to ensure to discuss with learners issues and topics that are essential to them, what they are feeling about the world, and how they are studying.
Moreover, through ensure good communication through phone answering questions addressing issues affecting the students efficiently and calmly, and following up on emails and voicemails in less than a day. I have been tasked to be the voice and face of the special needs children in the school. I connect the learners to the corresponding faculty and manage to articulate their needs in class and beyond. In addition, I am enthusiastic about what we are doing and am always delighted to demonstrate and explain in-depth to the students anything that bothers them in education and life to enhance success in their learning.
Teamwork
In my educational philosophy, I have realized that teamwork fits in dispute resolution. Being a teacher, there is no solo work in teaching students to excel in their studies. There is a need to have a support system when one does not understand something. For example, when I am giving out a test and everybody close to me understands the point and I do not, I can walk to the staff room and ask my co-worker what to do to succeed at that point assessing my students. Subsequently, I need teamwork when it matters to do with talking to other learners and parents (Alliant Intl University, 2022). In addition, more than one individual in the classroom for a vital meeting guarantees that no information becomes mistaken for anything else.
My educational philosophy as a teacher is to emphasize the word “every” as the general word denoting inclusion and bringing together students with a mutual rationale. I trust it is a word that connects with my philosophy of education because each student deserves to receive quality regardless of his/her disability. Hence, I believe it is my duty as a professional teacher to be an effective and efficient diagnostician of my students’ capacities, and interests, before knowledge and skills in class.
My Teaching Philosophy
Philosophical Effects
Education is the area where philosophy has witnessed a substantial effect. It utilizes philosophy in two different ways. By employing philosophical tactics to help learners and articulating long-established philosophical traditions. Despite its theoretical nature, it has a great extent of practical value in students’ and teachers’ lives. Education in philosophy offers a way to react to, question, and interact with the world. It is a means of being in the world, for if people discontinue doing philosophy, they are left with the sense that this is like holding their breath forever. Hence, philosophical skills and knowledge are a goal, even though not for its sake (Johnson et al., 2018). The philosophy of education struggles to enhance teachers’ capacity to act efficiently and effectively while living well by considering what they know and how they understand it.
My educational philosophy on the aim of education is to instill fundamental abilities that are confirmed to be relevant and required by society. Consequently, I struggle to offer learners a robust foundation, which may empower them in their workplace in the future. I aim to assist learners to become aware of the manner they study so that they may employ it to their prospects if they are workers or students. As an educator, I believe, I must develop a basis for students that they may require to learn everything the business world offers to them. In addition, I believe that effective and efficient teaching should be pragmatic. Hence, I strive to establish solid backgrounds for learners so that they may experience the world of employment with confidence. Further, I believe children’s role is to be engaged and interact with other learners and teachers, participate in classroom discussions, and respond in a receptive way in class (Alliant Intl University, 2022). Thus, I believe students learn at the time they trust they may learn.
I trust that learners’ inspiration may be connected to the course content in a manner that can easily be comprehended, through the utilization of the classroom environment. The best teaching approach is active learning rather than passive listening because students learn well when they get involved in the classroom, mostly in tasks that engage interacting with the environment. However, assessment acts as a formative aim for me as a teacher.
Conclusion
Many situations and events lead to the personal philosophy of teachers, in which most of them are focused on benefiting the students. Alliant’s IMPACT six core values substantially lead to students’ development, and as special education professional teachers, there is a need for us to incorporate the values into our educational philosophies to benefit students with special needs. Hence, a teacher should comprehend the values and incorporate them within teaching professional approaches and personal educational philosophy.
References
Alliant Intl University. (2022). Making an impact in the world. Web.
Johnson, J. A., Musial, D. L., Hall, G. E., & Gollnick, D. M. (2018). Foundations of American education: Becoming effective teachers in challenging times (4th ed.). Pearson.
Phillips, W. R. (2018). Pursuing personal passion:. Family Medicine, 50(1), 41-46. Web.
Stevens-Fulbrook, P. (2020). Vygotsky, Piaget and bloom.: The definitive guide to their educational theories with examples of how they can be applied (3rd ed.). Paul Stevens-Fulbrook.