Education Philosophy Interview with Jason

Describe your interview of Jason.

My interview with Jason went well. I see the value in having a pen and paper with you as with some of the questions, he continued talking for a long time. I didn't want to interrupt him so I let him continue but I found it difficult to remember all the ideas. Besides the pen and paper, I think this could have been resolved by having questions that were a bit more focused (My first 'question' was "tell me about yourself" and was followed by a very lengthy response involving all his objects). I also found the importance in listening and that because you cannot predict what your interviewee says, you must always be listening so you are able to build on ideas for which you may want more information.


What is Jason's education philosophy?

In my interview with Jason, he brought out 4 objects.

The first was a book of logic puzzles written in Chinese. He explained that to him, this represented the diversity in the classroom and how we should use different approaches to reach these students. He explained that this diversity can come in a variety of forms (racial, cultural, religious, etc.) and that we should model acceptance for all.

The second was a white out pen which he noted was not seen as often in schools anymore. He said that students are using pencils and erasers or just crossing out their work more often than when he was in school. This, to him, represented the changes in the general teaching methods. He noted that our teaching now is more accommodating of a variety of learning styles. He also said how teaching methods are not universal and that for him, he has moved away from a teaching approach involving mainly a lecture style lesson followed by practice and more towards an approach involving students guided towards developing their own understanding.

The third was a pair of earphones. This represented two ideas: 1) the importance of listening in the classroom and 2) the ability to help students focus by blocking out distractions. He elaborated by saying that as teachers, we must learn to listen to our students; hear where they are coming from so we can see their troubles and then guide them. He also said that students must also listen and we can encourage this by creating an environment that helps them focus. To him, this meant that we block out distractions and this can mean different things to different students. He continued to say that some students like to be alone so we should recognize this and provide them space to learn individually while some are more group learners and social interaction may not be as much as a distraction to them but there is always a balance between group and individual work.

The final object was a battery recharger which represented what it sounds like - recharging. He said that as teachers, we must find the time to relax as our jobs can be tiring. For him, this meant sleeping, taking vacations and making the most of weekends. He also noted that we cannot forget that students need time to recharge as well. We can help them by making class not seem like a routine task by mixing things up: having a variety of activities so students are excited to come to class everyday. This could also mean mixing up homework as well. We can provide them some group projects, individual homework assignments and even some days without homework so they can just take a break.