My Career As An Educator

As a Pre-Service Teacher I can acknowledge the importance of a philosophy and the sharing of the beliefs and strategies that I aim to use in my classroom. I understand that these may change through the course of my teaching career, as I will extend my knowledge and skills during my journey of self-discovery. By reflecting on my actions and participating in various professional development courses I will allow myself to grow within my role as an early childhood teacher. I enjoy learning the numerous new ways that different resources and technologies can help me develop my teaching style. By becoming a lifelong learner I will ensure that I give my students the skills that they will need to succeed in their schooling and

‘‘Gardner’s multiple intelligences theory can be used for curriculum development, planning instruction, selection of course activities, and related assessment strategies. Instruction which is designed to help students develop their strengths can also trigger their confidence to develop areas in which they are not as strong. Students’ multiple learning preferences can be addressed when instruction includes a range of meaningful and appropriate methods, activities, and assessments. Gardner’s early work in psychology and later in human cognition and human potential’ led to the development of the initial six intelligences. Today there are nine intelligences and the possibility of others may eventually expand the list. These intelligences (or competencies) relate to a person’s unique aptitude set of capabilities and ways they might prefer to demonstrate intellectual abilities’’ ( (Armstrong, T., 2010). Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences

Children learn in various ways, and need various teaching methods and styles to accommodate those styles. The educational theorist Howard Gardner theorized his theory of Multiple Intelligences in 1983. This theory has influenced my teaching throughout my teaching thus far. It was most obvious during two times in my first practicum. The first time was during our Practicum 1 retreat. In order to become closer with our cohort, and predetermine how we all would work best together, we took various types of learning style quizzes. The test that stuck out the most to me was Howard Gardner’s Multiple Intelligences. During this test our cohort discovered that even though some of us may self-classify as a “visual” or “auditory” learner we also learned that we identified as a mathematical and/or spatial learners. Just as we all learn differently, so will our future students. Also, during my first placement in a Kindergarten classroom at Oak Grove Elementary I quickly discovered that even at the beginning of a student’s educational career they all learn

After receiving my Bachelor of Arts in Elementary Education, I plan to further my education through UNC Charlotte’s M.Ed. in Special Education, Major in Academically or Intellectually Gifted program. I then aspire to teach in CMS schools, serving the needs of Academically or Intellectually Gifted children specifically. My career goals in the field of education are to start out teaching my own class and gaining invaluable experience in the classroom. After a numbers of years working with a large group of my own students, I strive to move to a position in which I am part of a program targeted specifically at meeting the academic needs of AIG students.

My career aspirations are to work with, help, and mold students and children as a future educator and ultimately, an administrator. I hope to follow in the footsteps of my mother and keep the tradition alive of being a college graduate and a teacher. As a Hispanic, being a second generation college student and receiving higher education has always been an established priority of mine. As a future high school teacher, I plan to help urban and underprivileged students reach their highest potential. I’d like to somehow participate in changing the stereotypical cycle of discontinued education among these individuals and their families. Living in a diverse community, I’ve witnessed a stigma and cycle of undervaluing

Ideally, when I graduate, I would like to enter the credential program at Cal Poly Pomona. As an English Education major, I feel like this is the next logical step for me as I seek to move forward on my path of becoming a teacher. The opportunities that await me in the credential program truly excite me because I have always found my studies of English Education to be very rewarding and purposeful. I have found this to be especially true now because I am currently in the process of conducting observation hours at local high schools in Pomona as part of my English Education curriculum. When I am in the classroom, I immediately feel a sense of joy, purpose, and productivity. Outside of the classroom, I do have experience teaching as a leader for a club on campus; I am a Woman’s Bible Study Leader for Cal Poly Cru and I have found this experience of teaching college students to be the most exciting, challenging, and rewarding experience I have ever had the pleasure of being a part of. It can become overwhelming as doubts and deadlines tend to sneak in on me from time to time, but I know that being a teacher is worth every ounce of pressure because of the positive impact that a teacher has the ability to make on a student. There is an incredible statistic that states that “On average a teacher affects 3,000 children over the course of their career” (Bickley). This opportunity stirs my heart like nothing else because when I was in high school, I had an incredible teacher named

Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences allows educators to differentiate their instruction in order to reach every student. I believe this theory is relevant for this reason. Differentiation has become such an important form of instruction in a teacher’s classroom. Without differentiated instruction, low achieving students are left behind and high achieving students are bored. By using this theory educators are able to learn which students need what type of instruction, which allows every student continued success.

This research paper will unpack the multiple intelligences theory developed by Howard Gardner. According to Molly Zhou and David Brown, “Howard Gardner 's theory of Multiple Intelligences utilizes aspects of cognitive and developmental psychology, anthropology, and sociology to explain the human intellect” (Zhou & Brown, 2015). By touching on the life of Howard Gardner, exploring some of his achievements, and studying his theory as well as how it relates to the modern-day classroom, a better understanding of what teachers are up against will be reached.

Through my schooling so far, I have learned and read about education and student culture to put together a general philosophy about what I believe as a teacher. Beginning the middle level education program, my philosophy has evolved and strengthened based on the uniqueness of young adolescent needs. I believe that every child can learn and deserves equal opportunity in the classroom. I believe that young adolescents deserve a curriculum that accommodates whatever need they may have. I believe that every child deserves a teacher who will advocate for them academically and socially. This philosophy will continue to evolve as I continue my journey through the program.

“When we are too busy to reflect on how we are living our lives; it is almost certain that we are too busy not doing the right things”(Kelly, 2017). As I began to reflect on myself as a teacher, I asked the question of what made me desire the career in the first place. To answer this, I will tell you a story of a young girl who was entranced by her parent’s careers as Nassau BOCES employees. She took in as much information as possible as she watched her mother, a Speech Pathologist, feed a child through a feeding tube, and her father, a Special Education Teacher, create a comfortable environment in his classroom. As one might guess, this girl was me, and my parents are my inspiration to become a teacher. While I lack the ability to speak another language, my patience and hard work will allow me to be successful in my future endeavors as an aspiring educator. Furthermore, my experiences in school have motivated me to implore my future students to think critically. Readings and videos such as Tuning in to teacher-talk by Susi Long, The School to Prison Pipeline by Marilyn Elias, Engaged Pedagogy by Bell Hooks, and The Dangers of a Single Story by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, allow me to constantly reflect on myself as a teacher.

The difficulties of stepping into the adult world are now having to decide what you are going to do with the rest of your life. The first hurdle to step over is what career interests you most. But not only that, what will you enjoy doing every day for the rest of your life. Furthermore, you need to decide where you think you might enjoy studying. Where your grades will be accepted, where you will feel accepted and whether or not they offer your degree. The second biggest hurdle to jump over is deciding whether or not to have a major, minor or neither. This is just the beginning of all the decisions. After you think you have decided the right choice, you are soon to figure out if you are able to work hard enough, have enough determination and passion to invoke in this career. For many people, this isn’t something they ever think of when someone says the word “teacher.” Working hard, being stressed and working on your weekends is something the rest of the world forgets to remind themselves teacher do. There truly is a lot more to teaching then the world sees. Let’s look at the career of a teacher; most people think that the biggest part of the teacher’s job is to be a “glorified babysitter” with weekends, holidays and summers off. They assume teaching as a career is just as easy as one, two, three however, those of us in the education field know that is far from the truth. Teachers are so lucky to have the privilege to be allowed the ability to instill in young kid’s minds

Howard Gardner, born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, on July 11, 1943 is best known for his Theory of Multiple Intelligences. Gardner, a developmental psychologist, received his undergraduate degree and PhD from Harvard University. Gardner has authored many books/articles and received many awards. In his book, Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences, Gardner introduced The Theory of Multiple Intelligences. This paper will discuss The Theory of Multiple Intelligences and give practical ways this theory can be used in the classroom.

If you told my high school teachers that I graduated college they would have chuckled at the thought and I wouldn't blame them. I did not grow up with the lifelong dream of becoming a physician assistant. Honestly, I did not even know such a position existed.When I was younger I never really thought of any profession or what I wanted to do when I “grew up”. I just knew somehow, some way I wanted to “make it”. To “make it” wasn’t really defined. It was an arbitrary thing that my friends and I said to each to each other that sounded right, after all we all just want to “make it”.

The career that I chose is to be a teacher. First, before choosing this career, I asked myself what could be good and something that I liked at the same time. I think it is ideal for me because it grabs my attention to teach children how to write well, learn to read, and to teach fun subjects so that they learn better. I had some doubts about whether I might be good enough to help children have a future. I am a person who has a lot of patience and patience is very important to help in the teaching of children.

Throughout most of my life, I’ve always thought that being a teacher would be fun, especially teaching middle school students. I would get to interact with kids while I help them learn. The job title that I would have would be a middle school teacher. My major qualifies me for being a middle school teacher, but I could also teach other elementary grades (“How to Write a Teacher Job Description.” Jobs, ). “Middle school teachers educate students typically in sixth through eighth grade” (“Summary”). I chose this career because I think middle school is the most important time in a child's life. Middle schoolers need guidance, and teachers help them. It is important to understand the education or training requirements, skills or talents needed, salary or benefits offered, and the duties for a particular career when making the decision.