My Teaching Philosophy :: Essays Papers

My Teaching Philosophy Why do you want to be a teacher?This is a question I am frequently asked by rich relatives considering my choice from a monetary perspective; by my grandparents who both taught in the Bronx for 30 years; and most frequently by myself.Why do I want to teach?Why have I decided on history and social studies? In all honesty there have been many different answers to that question and the answer has changed three times since the start of this paragraph.I suppose part of being young is inconsistency.I am no different.But understanding these differences and understanding people is the key.I think I have a gift to see inside people and to help them see inside themselves.Right now there are three main reasons why I have chosen teaching history to by my life long profession, or at least until I have a mid-life crisis.These reasons are as follows: passion, ability and, no matter how clichà ©, the desire to make a difference. Since I was a child I have always been fascinated with history.I could watch the History and Discovery channels for hours. I had read the complete works of Jane Austin by the end of middle school.I used to go to the local museum and wander around for hours.In the second grade we took a field trip to see the Bill of Rights, which was on tour for its 200th birthday.Honestly, I remember very little of the actual document itself, but I will never forget the feeling.I knew it was important, because my teacher told so, and I know the awe it inspired in people.I think that is where this passion began.I received the Civil War documentary by Ken Burns on my tenth birthday and went to the Tower of London on my thirteenth.What started as awe has become my passion. What will this passion mean to my students you may ask?My father is a Roman Catholic from the Netherlands.My mother is a Jewish girl from Brooklyn.They met in a sheep field in Israel.I am a child of divorce and have a crease in my nose.The point is that I have a story.This story is more important than I can say.To know my story is know where I come from.This story, the story of my students, history is my passion.We are living it and breathing it.We are history.In my classroom I want to teach my students to care about who they are and where they come from.