Teaching Philosophy

       As an instructor of ESL, my job is to help students develop skills in reading, writing, listening ,and speaking.  According to Edelsky (1993), language is not learned in separate parts but instead, it is a ‘super system’ of different parts combined into one.  Therefore I use graphic organizers to enhance learning, I use instructional materials that integrate the four skills, and  I develop curriculums that include pragmatics, sociolinguistics ( Bachman, 1996)  and culture  (Byrd,1995).   My lessons are mostly communicative because language learning is a natural process and that the most effective way to teach ESL is to use means that will approximate real life situations  (Krashen  & Terrel,1983). My lesson planning includes  a stimulating opening to set a tone for the class for the day (McGrath, Davis and Mulphin 1992) and an ending that will leave  the students a sense of accomplishment.  To make every lesson a success, I sequence the lessons as  interestingly as possible so the class will not drag (Gowers & Walters,1983). To maintain the flow, I pace exercises and activities accordingly to the mood of the class to reduce a loss of momentum between one activity to the other (Doyle, 1986 ).   

          My goal as a teacher is to make a difference in the students' lives. In order to help students develop their talents and appeal to different learning styles,   I pay close attention to the Multiple Intelligences of the students. According to  Gardner (1993),  educators must nurture all the varied human intelligences  in our classrooms and to bring out the best qualities of our students . To achieve this, I incorporate computers, audiotapes, and video tapes in the classroom  to stimulate the five senses of our students.   To create a multicultural  student- centered classroom, I focus on being  fair to all.  I am sensitive to students' feelings and attitudes and try to avoid the pitfalls of gender, ethnic, and personal preferences in the classrooms, such as calling onto some students and ignoring others (Schinke –Llano,1983).  To achieve fairness, I  am always attentive to self check the  “teacher’s zone” to ensure both male and female students have  their fair share of talking time (Holmes,1997) in our educational setting.

 My view towards language acquisition is balanced between the natural acquisition theories of  Krashen (1983) and  the  practice-makes-perfect  approach of  Sharwood- Smith (1981,as cited in Ellis,1994).   Therefore my teaching methods include teaching both implicitly and explicitly.  In order to propel students forward,  I put pressure on the students so that there will be intellectual growth  ( i+1) ( Krashen,1983 ); however, at the same time, I walk the thin line  between giving criticism and support. I use low affective filter to nurture teacher-student interaction  and often give a hand clap  for good work. To better help students, I try to be a  good listener  and use some affective activities to help identify possible problem students. According to Moskowwitz (1978), personal problems can block learning, and giving students the opportunities to talk about themselves can increase motivation and learning.                          

        To become a successful teacher has become my life long goal. As I dedicate a great deal of my time towards learning and teaching,  in the same way, I expect  my students to dedicate their time and energy to learning and become better learners everyday.  Needless to say, teaching is a life time commitment and a rewarding experience.

                                                     REFERENCES

     Bachman, L.,& Palmer, A. (1996). Language testing in practice. Oxford: Oxford University Press. 

     Byrd, P. (1995).  Material writer’s guide.  New York: Heinle & Heinle.

     Ellis, R. (1994).  Social factors and second language acquisition. Second language  acquisition. (pp.202-204). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

     Holmes, J. (1997).  Women, language and identity.  Journal of Sociolinguistics,1(2),195-223.

     Kamhi-Stein, L.,  & Black, E.  (2000).  TESL 562: Methods of teaching second languages.  California State University, Los Angeles. Charter School of Education.

     Krashen, S.,& Terrell, T. (1983). The natural approach:  language acquisition in the classroom.  Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall.

     Richard-Amato, P. (1996).  Making it happen. New York: Addison-Wesley Publishing.