ABout Me
My name is Rachel Sinton, I am 23 years old and a recent graduate of Colorado State University with a Bachelor's in English Education and a minor in Spanish. Colorado is where my roots are. After deciding to move to Fort Collins from Durango, Colorado, I chose a degree in Education for one main reason: I want to make the world a better place. Teaching is a way that I can achieve this. I hope I can share my passion and enthusiasm for learning, Education, and English with as many people as possible. In return, I would like the opportunity to be inspired by those I teach, work with, and learn from everyday.
My Teaching Philosophy
In my class, every student will bring a unique background, personality, and strength into the room each day. This being said, my classroom is a place for individuality as well as a communal environment. By looking at individualism as a strength rather than a weakness, student progress is fully achieved.
I feel strongly in the power of the individual. In my very first Education class at Colorado State University, my professor, Dr. Antonette Aragon, strongly emphasized the fact that not every student learns the same exact way. Instead, she taught me that there are different approaches, techniques, and methods that need to be applied to each individual student. While this can cause complications and difficulties in the classroom, what I discovered from Dr. Aragon has stuck with me. In my classroom, the different ways in which students learn will not weaken the classroom. Instead, it will strengthen it. I see individuality as a powerful teaching tool because it leads to a more dynamic learning environment. I am a teacher that learns from my students. I do not see student differences as flaws, complications, or problems within the classroom.
I will implement student individuality through a variety of ways. First, I have discovered that students learn from their peers. This being said, my communal classroom will involve a lot of group work, peer evaluation, and discussion groups. For instance, I plan on using “book clubs” as a way to tackle several novels throughout the school year. This will allow every student to have the opportunity to learn through teamwork.
As mentioned earlier, in my classroom students will be the true teachers. By listening, working, and adjusting to student preferences, I will improve as an educator. In the classroom, my learning will be evaluated based on student feedback and conferences. I will take the time to meet weekly with each of my students in order to better accommodate their needs while also helping to develop my teaching environment. These conferences will address students with Individual Education Programs (IEP’s) as well as English Language Learners (ELL’s and ESL’s). Not only this, but one on one conversations will allow me to monitor every student’s progress through formative evaluation. I am confident that this communication will create a strong relationship between the students and myself.
Another way that I will monitor student growth and achievement is by keeping an individual portfolio for each of my students. These portfolios will include work they've done throughout the semester, comments I’ve noted in student conferences and the classroom, and any additional information necessary. For me, a students summative assessment grade is important; however, it is much more effective to see individual student progress throughout the year rather than just the final outcome.
A final—and arguably most important way—that I will implement individuality within the classroom is by support and respect. I volunteered as an English teacher and childcare provider in Rabat, Morocco for four weeks. Immersed into an entirely new environment, an unfamiliar culture, and a non-English speaking country, teaching was a tremendously challenging process. I felt extremely lost not being able to communicate in my native language. Instead, I was thrown into learning as much of Arabic and French as I could in the short time that I was there. While this experience was very demanding, it was also enormously rewarding. The opportunity allowed me to realize how difficult it is to learn, as well as teach, when there is a language barrier. I don’t want any of my students to feel lost or dis-empowered due to a situation like this. My students will know that our classroom is a safe community that promotes individualism. I will make my classroom culturally welcoming and inviting for students of all backgrounds.
My classroom will be a community made up of unique, brilliant, and creative individuals. I will not try and categorize all of my students as the same but instead I will respect and adapt to every individual. This way, my classroom will be a diverse environment where everyone, including myself, will have the opportunity to learn.
My Teaching Philosophy
In my class, every student will bring a unique background, personality, and strength into the room each day. This being said, my classroom is a place for individuality as well as a communal environment. By looking at individualism as a strength rather than a weakness, student progress is fully achieved.
I feel strongly in the power of the individual. In my very first Education class at Colorado State University, my professor, Dr. Antonette Aragon, strongly emphasized the fact that not every student learns the same exact way. Instead, she taught me that there are different approaches, techniques, and methods that need to be applied to each individual student. While this can cause complications and difficulties in the classroom, what I discovered from Dr. Aragon has stuck with me. In my classroom, the different ways in which students learn will not weaken the classroom. Instead, it will strengthen it. I see individuality as a powerful teaching tool because it leads to a more dynamic learning environment. I am a teacher that learns from my students. I do not see student differences as flaws, complications, or problems within the classroom.
I will implement student individuality through a variety of ways. First, I have discovered that students learn from their peers. This being said, my communal classroom will involve a lot of group work, peer evaluation, and discussion groups. For instance, I plan on using “book clubs” as a way to tackle several novels throughout the school year. This will allow every student to have the opportunity to learn through teamwork.
As mentioned earlier, in my classroom students will be the true teachers. By listening, working, and adjusting to student preferences, I will improve as an educator. In the classroom, my learning will be evaluated based on student feedback and conferences. I will take the time to meet weekly with each of my students in order to better accommodate their needs while also helping to develop my teaching environment. These conferences will address students with Individual Education Programs (IEP’s) as well as English Language Learners (ELL’s and ESL’s). Not only this, but one on one conversations will allow me to monitor every student’s progress through formative evaluation. I am confident that this communication will create a strong relationship between the students and myself.
Another way that I will monitor student growth and achievement is by keeping an individual portfolio for each of my students. These portfolios will include work they've done throughout the semester, comments I’ve noted in student conferences and the classroom, and any additional information necessary. For me, a students summative assessment grade is important; however, it is much more effective to see individual student progress throughout the year rather than just the final outcome.
A final—and arguably most important way—that I will implement individuality within the classroom is by support and respect. I volunteered as an English teacher and childcare provider in Rabat, Morocco for four weeks. Immersed into an entirely new environment, an unfamiliar culture, and a non-English speaking country, teaching was a tremendously challenging process. I felt extremely lost not being able to communicate in my native language. Instead, I was thrown into learning as much of Arabic and French as I could in the short time that I was there. While this experience was very demanding, it was also enormously rewarding. The opportunity allowed me to realize how difficult it is to learn, as well as teach, when there is a language barrier. I don’t want any of my students to feel lost or dis-empowered due to a situation like this. My students will know that our classroom is a safe community that promotes individualism. I will make my classroom culturally welcoming and inviting for students of all backgrounds.
My classroom will be a community made up of unique, brilliant, and creative individuals. I will not try and categorize all of my students as the same but instead I will respect and adapt to every individual. This way, my classroom will be a diverse environment where everyone, including myself, will have the opportunity to learn.