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PHILOSPHY PAPER 1
Running Header: PHILOSOPHY PAPER
Philosophy Paper:
The Education of Leaders
Through the Eyes of a Leader
Matthew Kimball
Education 230: Section 2
April 28, 2009
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 2
Abstract
This paper explores exactly what a teacher leader is and how God, the Marines, and my personal
experiences have shaped all aspects of my educational philosophy. Topics include: Character,
beliefs about students, classroom environment, school purpose, curriculum, teaching and
learning, and discipline. Much of the content was based on 7 years of personal experiences
where I was a leader utilizing practical mentoring and teaching techniques on a daily basis. Many
current texts with topics geared towards education in todays society were then used to add
backing to the ideas that worked for me in the field.
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 3
Outline
Introduction:
1. Teachers are Leaders2. Arriving at my calling3. Thesis
a. Being a teacher leader is a powerful calling that will effect every aspect ofhow I teach and what I believe about schools, the curricula, disciplining,
and the all important relation that a teacher cultivates with his students.
Body:
ME:
1. Displaying character through The 14 Marine Corps Leadership Characteristicsa. Justiceb. Judgmentc. Dependabilityd. Integritye. Decisivenessf. Tactg. Initiativeh. Enthusiasmi. Bearingj. Unselfishnessk. Courage
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 4
l. Knowledgem. Loyaltyn. Endurance
2. Professionalism must be modeleda. 11 Leadership principles
i. Know yourself and seek self improvementii. Be technically and tactically proficient
iii. Seek responsibility and take responsibility for your actionsiv.
Make sound and timely decisions
v. Set the example in all thingsvi. Know your men and look out for their welfare
vii. Keep your men informedviii. Develop a sense of responsibility in your subordinates
ix. Ensure that the task is understood, supervised, andaccomplished
x. Train your men as a teamxi. Employ your men in accordance with their capability
b. Dressc. Languaged. Mannerismse. Titles
3. What I ultimately want to accomplish in my rolea. NCO Creed
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 5
b. Knowledgec. Experiencesd. Mentor/counselor
4. Displaying Christ in the public settinga. Enthusiasmb. Respectfulc. Inadvertent evangelism Dirk.
STUDENTS:
1. I believe students to be good or lost and sometimes both2. Favoritism and student-teacher relationships3. Motivation is key
a. Extrinsicb. Intrinsic
THE CLASSROOM:
1. A safe and academic environment2. Operational logistics and critical procedures
a. Wong 1b. Wong 2c. Wong 3
3. Structure of my classroom4. Aesthetics of my classroom
SCHOOLS:
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 6
1. Schools should attempt to teach three major areasa. Trade skills, or getting into further training for trade workb. College or professional arena that requires further formal trainingc. Leadership tract/military career or police/EMT/Fire rescue, things that
require an academy or boot camp.
2. What different school types try to accomplisha. Publicb. Charterc.
Christian
3. I want to teach in a charter schoolCURRICULUM:
1. Source of all truth is God2. Teaching absolute truth is possible3. Knowledge be divided into sections
a. Human/secularb. Divine/ religious
4. Teaching from a biblical platforma. Examples.
TEACHING AND LEARNING:
1. Learning will open students eyes2. Integrated learning is a fantastic method of teaching3. Moral principles are a cornerstone to education and succeeding in life
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 7
a. Integrityb. Honestyc. Work ethic
4. Creative expression in students will be expressed.DISCIPLINE:
1. Correcting students through disciplinary measures2. Classroom rules ensure knowledge of what is and isnt acceptable behavior.3. Classroom rules
a. Severe point penalties for late assignmentsb. Only specific questions will be answeredc. Assignments are due in my box on my desk as soon as you walk in, all
others are late
d. No cell phone allowede. Emergency bathroom use only, one person at a time; Ill have a big
goofy looking hall pass
f. Sharpen pencils at will; pencil sharpener is in the backg. All hand written assignments must be in pencilh. Raise your hand to speak
4. Classroom disciplinary systema. Level 1: verbal chagrin in front of class, on the spot. Used to keep the
class in line, now everyone will see that I am firm and fair. I also care
about the rules.
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 8
b. Level 2: staying after class for the one on one approach so I candetermine if something else is going on.
c. Level 3: Phone call home, or detention. Dependent on what became oflevel two. To see if something at home is going on or if the parent
even knows about the issue.
d. Severe penalties: Dock in grade, suspension. Defer to school policy.This is out of my hands if it is that bad. I like to keep problems at my
level.
5.
Generally speaking some ways are better than others to discipline a student
a. Constructive outlets.Conclusion:
1. Thesisa. Being a teacher leader is a powerful calling that will effect every aspect of
how I teach and what I believe about schools, the curricula, discipline, and the
all important relation that a teacher cultivates with his students.
2. The readers personal connection3. Teacher leader is all about character4. Teacher leader is all about the relationship5. Proverbs 22.6
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 9
INTRODUCTION
Teachers are leaders. This simple and unsuspecting statement can be extremely powerful
when unpacked fully. It has been a long time in coming as I slowly discovered my purpose in
life. It is for certain that I have taken the longer and less traveled road and I whole heartedly
believe it is God who has been preparing me by allowing such unique experiences to present
themselves in my life. As I look back at the events that have shaped me and where I stand today
as a person of God and as a person of character, I know I am hard wired to be a teacher leader.
Being a teacher leader is a powerful calling that will effect every aspect of how I teach and what
I believe about schools, the curricula, disciplining, and the all important relation that a teacher
cultivates with his students.
ME
Who I am as a person governs everything in my life. How I act, what I value, what I
believe, how Ill teach, and how Ill present myself. These things, people try and sum up into
convenient words and over simplified characteristics. I have chosen a set of characteristics that I
feel adequately describe me in a nutshell. These are not inclusive, but certainly would be a
large part of who I am.
I have spent the majority of the last seven years in the employ of the United States
Marine Corps, which has been called the greatest school in the world for leadership training. Its
a school of hard knocks and one of formal purposeful teaching. Ive learned 14 leadership
characteristics that I have come to appreciate as high qualities of a leader and strive most days to
achieve. They are: justice, judgment, dependability, integrity, decisiveness, tact, initiative,
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 10
enthusiasm, bearing, unselfishness, courage, knowledge, loyalty, and endurance (USMC, 1989).
They form the acronym JJ DID TIE BUCKLE for easy remembering. These were compiled from
238 years of hard lessons learned under extremely stressful conditions (USMC, 1989). The
Marine Corps does an extremely good job of fostering a warrior ethos and part of that is
incorporating these leadership characteristics into our everyday lives. It works very well. I
confidently intend on bringing these traits into my classroom in creative and respectful ways.
These characteristics manifest in many ways. Justice is shown in the classroom by
treating everyone with the same legalize, meaning every student under my tutelage and guidance
will be treated, assessed, disciplined, and rewarded the same. Judgment deals with my idealistic
values that I have accumulated through my parents mentoring and personal experiences. I will
bounce what students say and do off my prior, Christian beliefs and hold them to these standards
when dealing with morality, and appropriateness in my classroom. I will be committed to being
dependable, i.e. always turning back graded assignments in a timely fashion, always being
prepared, always being enthusiastic, and a man of my word. Integrity is the most important
leadership characteristic in my opinion. I will exemplify this as a person of God and as a teacher
and roll model. I will strive to be transparent and honest with students so as to show them it is
important to do what is right when no one is looking. A great leader must be decisive and will
display this in his ability to think on his feet and roll with new inputs. Decisiveness is about
being able to make another choice under less than desirable circumstances and take it to its
fullest potential. There will be difficulty when teaching controversial issues and a good teacher
leader will utilize tact to unobtrusively convey these sensitive areas. We must continue to take
initiative and jump on ideas and opportunities as they come along. We as teachers should desire
to turn the knob on the door instead of waiting for it to pop open for us. Enthusiasm is so
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 11
important in keeping your students excited about the subject area. The best thing about
enthusiasm is its contagious. In the Marines we have a saying, False motivation is better than
no motivation. Its amazing to watch people feed off your fake motivation and that can in turn
pull you out of a slump. Not everyday will be a GREAT day, and we should always Hope for
the best and prepare for the worst. Bearing is a very professional trait and should be taken in
small doses to achieve the ideal balance. Bearing is about maintaining your body control and
knowing when you have to be serious and when you can let go and show your true personality.
Thats why its a balance, people with too much bearing come off as sterile and too stoic, which
can turn students away. You must still maintain that professional authoritative figure. Its a
balance. Unselfishness is the heart of being a teacher. In all things we must make it about the
students, not a professor of yourself; we are TEACHERS. Courage. Courage, is something that
many people will never understand. Courage is being afraid of something with full knowledge of
the consequences, and still doing what needs to be done because of an intrinsic drive of duty and
calling. As teachers we will face times where you see something that needs to be done, it is
extremely unpopular, but it still needs to be done. Knowledge is the classic hallmark of the
academic world and we as educators should be experts in all aspects of this characteristic. We
must have the knowledge. We must know how to get and maintain the knowledge. We must
know how to convey the knowledge. We also need to know how to make knowledge interesting
and, on top of all that, put pizzazz on it. Loyalty can be easily displayed by attending after school
functions, wearing school colors, being a confidant that doesnt spread rumors, and making your
students a priority in your life. Endurance. Endurance. Endurance. This quality is what will kill
many teachers in the early times of their careers. The school year is long, 20 years of teaching is
long, 30 years of teaching is long, and sport seasons are long. If you have no endurance with
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 12
these characteristics they are as useless as a cup of water in the ocean. As teachers we need to set
an appropriate rhythm to the school year. Students are perceptive and can pick up on the
organized chug of the machine and will pace alongside you easily enough. These 14 leadership
characteristics are ideals that I personally strive to achieve in my daily life. I feel they will
govern my actions and motivations when dealing with everything else and will refer back to
them often.
Professional development was taught right alongside character development as I grew up
in the Marine Corps. Steven Sturkey wrote a book about the warrior culture and explains the 11
Marine Corps Principles very well (Sturkey 2001). They are basically a list on how to deal with
your Junior Marines in a professional and mentoring manner; they understood that leaders are
excellent professional teachers. A large portion of these principles pertain to professional
development and teaching. We were instructed that in order to grow as a professional leader we
needed to exemplify these principles.
Know yourself and seek self improvement. As professionals we need to constantly look
in the mirror and critically analyze what we are doing right and what we are doing wrong and
strive to fix this, generally through continued education. Be technically and tactically
proficient. It is considered unprofessional to stand up in front of someone and totally blow
smoke in their face with bad knowledge and uncaring towards them about what you are teaching.
So know your content. Seek responsibility and take responsibility for your actions. Many
employers tout responsibility for your actions. Make sound and t imely decisions.; Set the
example in all things.; know your men and look out for their welfare. These things were
considered my job. So in order to be professional I had to do my job. This would be true for any
mentorship position and teachers are no exception. Keep your men informed. I see this being
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 13
used in the classroom as a list of the daily items to be accomplished on the board and a few long
term goals on the board as well. Develop a sense of responsibility in your subordinates. This is
a different way of saying, inspire professionalism in your students. Every great teacher knows
students are still kids, and thus: Ensure that the task is understood, supervised, and
accomplished. In todays society especially, we must Train your men as a team. This can be
manifested in the classroom as group work or projects to be collaborated on. Employ your men
in accordance with their capabilities. This can be referred to when you are assessing your
students development. (Sturkey 2001) I have been taught that these things are defining principles
that professionals should follow so that they are respected and effective at their job. Along with
these are a few that the Marines teach in other areas of the culture. I feel dressing well and being
of good hygiene are hallmarks of a professional person. As teachers we need to watch our
language, contextually as well as the vernacular. Mannerisms as a teacher have gotten many
amazing professionals in trouble. This will regulate the degree with which you interact with
students. You can and should be there during tough times for the student, but avoid the lovey-
dovey-touchy. It can be completely innocent and still horribly construed. A way that we as
teachers and coaches can maintain the level of professionalism that should be present is through
the use of titles. Dont allow students or athletes, or Junior Marines to use your first name in a
buddy-buddy manner. You are the authority figure and should present yourself as such. This will
inadvertently teach them about God and show them a picture of God being the boss and showing
you a better way to live. The 11 leadership principles point to the idea of being prepared, and
making sure your men are prepared. They were talking about in a war of bullets. Im talking
about a war for their minds. The idea of a war for their minds brings up what I want to
accomplish as a teacher. The Non-Commissioned Officer Creed sums it up nicely.
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 14
(Sharp 2001)
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 15
This is the epitome of how I want to cause my students to grow. I believe that my job is
to supply good foundations of methodology and well known scientific facts so that God can
work His will and finish the job. I prepare the field if you will. I am not responsible for exerting
my beliefs on the students, but they will know Im a Christian by how I love them. I am a role
model that they should look up to in all aspects of my public life, and in turn I have a huge
responsibility to live up to those expectations I place on myself. I am in a position to push them
to the point of almost failure. I do not intend for them to be disappointed by what they cannot
reach, but to take heart in all that they did reach when they thought they couldnt. I get so excited
when I see my athletes succeed in this. It is truly a blessing to watch it unfold. Rarely does
anyone know their true potential, I have to help them uncover as much of that potential as
possible; sometimes that involves hitting walls. This is when the student is ready to have Christ
take over and send them further than either of us thought he could.
By showing the dedication and excitement I take in being with the students and the active
roles I intend to play in the school, my colleagues, parents, and students will know my heart.
When colleagues and myself go out for drinks or dinners or what have you, they will know by
my engagement in conversation and by being a good friend that I am a follower of Christ. People
tend to recognize respect when its given. I will strive to put myself in that position to answer
those what do you have going on that I dont? questions. I have a personal note on this topic.
I was shocked, dumbfounded, and ecstatic when my best friend invited me to his baptism.
I had no idea he had came to Christ. He was never raised a Christian, didnt go to church, didnt
have much of a family life at home. He was my friend, we did everything together. He knew I
went to church, I had invited him several times and he came; always indifferent, mostly just to
do whatever after church I think. I never openly ministered to him, yet somewhere along the way
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 16
he saw what was going on in my life and thought it was good for him too. At this baptism I was
sitting here listening to it and being super happy for him. This particular church has a tradition
where the person being baptized tells his testimony. He calls me out, saying I was an integral
part in his decision to follow Christ. I didnt know what to say. It was totally out of the blue and
unexpected. I had no idea what our friendship had done for the kingdom of God. It is proof to me
that you just have to show these good characteristics and answer what odd questions come your
way truthfully and honestly. You have to be transparent and a good friend, show that you love
other people, and they will begin to wonder what is different with you. Eventually, as God works
on their heart; they will recognize you for who you belong to. This is what I intend to do for the
kingdom of God, and I will be that rock in the public school system. Hopefully students, parents,
and colleagues alike will wonder what I have going on. Its all about relationships.
STUDENTS
A relationship with students is crucial to being an impact in their lives. Johnson says
some generalities in his text bookFoundations of American Education about what type of kids
we will come across in our careers as teachers. He says children from rural communities tend to
be more conservative and children from the suburbs traditionally have been upper-middle class
but are beginning to show signs of rising poverty levels (Johnson 2008). He also says urban
students will be more likely to be rich in entertainment resources, library access, museums, and
theaters (Johnson 2008). Their was a general statement that struck a chord with me particularly.
He says that students with good parenting will be better all around (Johnson 2008). He didnt go
into details about what was better about them, but Id agree full heartedly. So what does all
this mean. I take this as a prompt to begin getting my mind around the diversity that Ill face as a
teacher. I cannot hold these generalities too strongly because they are likely to change. I
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 17
especially dont want them to influence how I teach or do not teach because of my preconceived
notions of their capability level. Personally I feel that each individual student will have a
commonality that I can use to help benefit them and spur on my own creativity. Students rarely
know what they can actually achieve. It is important to me to keep them upbeat and positive, but
in the same breath correction and constructive criticism can be painful and necessary parts to
growth. A great method that Ive used in the past and has been used on me while I was in high
school was slightly unique. You have to start out with them disliking you more than they dislike
each other. This sounds harsh at first, but let me explain.
I have always been in a setting where the rule of no negative comments was used. My
mother always said, If you dont have anything nice to say, dont say anything at all. I feel that
by implementing this large and general rule in my classroom most of the vocal problems with put
downs and negative ribbing will be taken care of. By removing the outward discord between
peers a door is opened for step two of my unique method of bonding. Step two I finally put my
finger on this past year in Africa when I was leading 42 Junior Marines every day for 13 months.
You have to be hard on them, at least at first. The idea is to make them dislike you to the point
where they will begin to gang up and bond together against you. I dont outright intend to do
things that will make my class miserable, but by keeping them dogging in their studies and
pushing their limits they will begin to bond through unified suffering. I know this sounds harsh,
but even looking back through my athletic career I see that my coaches did this as well. We
would still show up, we would still do what was asked, and we grumbled to each other the whole
time, and I formed some of my best friendships that way. I watched amazing friendships form in
Africa through this same thing. My friends and I got through it. My Marines got through it. The
Bible says we should be counted lucky to be worthy of suffering. I dont know how or why
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 18
exactly this phenomenon occurs but it does. A trend that Ive noticed is that the squads and
platoons that were under my command have always been the tightest knit crews. Ill have to
think on this more, but when the other nine squads were having fist fight, or the other three
platoons were ratting on each other instead of getting each others backs; my platoon and squads
were always there for each other. Of course we had weird individuals that didnt quite mesh into
our group, but in each instance there was a group leader that broke out and helped tie them back
in. Students need this cohesion to succeed and I fully intend to foster that amongst their peers. To
further this cohesion I must eliminate favoritism.
The heart of combating favoritism is by being firm and fair. I will be firm and fair when
dealing with all my students. I will not foster wimpyness in my classroom. Thats what firm
means. Students will learn that life is hard and they can navigate through hard things. I will
revert back to my rules that will be set up ahead of time and test my characteristics mentioned
earlier: COURAGE, INTEGRITY, and JUSTICE. I will grade objectively and in order help me
in this I will have them write their names on the back of papers and ensure my assessments have
prewritten grading scales. A struggle I know Ill have is going to be with my athletes. This may
require me changing my persona on the field. Athletes and coaches have always had a special
bond, a much closer relationship because you share in their disappointments and you share in
their achievements in very emotional settings. I will struggle with this, and by making
assessments as organized and objective as possible I hope to eliminate most of the favoritism in
my classroom. Even when trying to keep the relationship between myself and my students
professional they will still need to be motivated.
I like the phrase: Teachers must extrinsically motivate their students to be intrinsically
driven. I really believe this is the ultimate end goal for our students. If you can light that fire
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 19
under them to where they take it upon themselves to learn and grow, they will be extremely
successful (Damon 2008). A lot of this has to do with helping them find their Moral North
Star, which is a fancy way of saying purpose. William Damon published an article in
Educational leadership in 2008 that was about how to build that intrinsic motivation in students
and why many students struggle to buckle down with their studies (Damon 2008). Providing
options and helpful guidance in what a student should, could, and would do is very helpful
(Damon 2008). We need to keep what is interesting to them in the forefront of our mind so as to
effectively engage them (Reiss, 2002/2000). We as teachers can only motivate through extrinsic
methods such as giving letter grades, smiley faces, gold stars, pats on the back, special
privileges, etc Its a reward based system in which teachers tantalize students with either the
carrot or the stick (Ryan 2008). This can work for awhile, but as soon as these goals are
achieved, apparently become too difficult, or the rewards are removed; the student will stop
trying to grow. We MUST inspire an intrinsic drive that will sustain them the rest of their
lives(Damon 2008, Motivation 2009, Nash 2005, Reiss 2002). This idea of inspiring my students
starts me thinking about the environment I want to foster in my classroom.
THE CLASSROOM
Classroom environment is an extremely important factor in making a student feel
welcomed, safe, and ready to engage in learning something exciting (Diaz 2006). It can set the
tone for everything else. Just like an author will use environmental conditions to effect a feeling
the story of a novel, so will your decorations effect the mindset of your students. This also
includes rules pertaining to respect, tolerance, physical contact, and how to go about various
monotonous procedures (Diaz 2006).
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 20
Some of the procedures that Wong fleshes out in his book about the first days of school
include: seating charts, assignments, taking roll, and establishing discipline (Wong 2009). I will
have a seating chart in my classroom and there are a few things I should keep in mind. Wong
says you need to have this set up by name before class begins (Wong 2009). This will eliminate
the annoying questions as to why one student cant sit next to his friend and another student can.
Be prepared (Wong 2009). The second procedure that Wong wants us teachers to be consistent
through out the year with is assignments. Have the assignments all posted on the board before
class starts in the same place, in the same manner (Wong 2009). Consistency (Wong 2009). Be
prepared (Wong 2009). Roll call. Wong says three important things about roll call: it should be
done quietly, quickly, and never disturb the class (Wong 2009). An example that his book gave,
which I thought was an incredible idea, was sitting in the back as one student each day gave a
relevant 3 minute speech (Wong 2009). This does everything that Wong suggests about roll call
and it covers material AND it causes the students to take some of their learning into their own
hands! Intrinsic motivation? Yes, I think it might spark some. Wong says that teachers are in
large part classroom managers (Wong 2009). Being organized, consistent, and prepared are great
ways to establish a beneficial and structured learning environment. Along with the contextual
aspects of your classroom a good teacher leader will have an appropriate aesthetic aspect as well.
When I dream, I dream of what my classroom will look like. Im the sort of person who
thinks appearances should not be important, but KNOW they are. I like the idea of decorating
and adding stuff to the classroom as the class itself develops. This will be an attempt to help
students unconsciously gage their progress. I like the picture of starting with a blank slate,
having spots that are cleanly prepared and awaiting stuff to be put there. Then as projects are
completed, and topics come up; I can post relevant current information that I know will interest
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 21
students because of the relationship I will be developing with them. I especially want to display
colleges and opportunities that deal highly with sciences alongside career ideas that deal with
science. Id also like a board that contains articles and tidbits that are recent scientific news, a
spot for my athletes, and a spot for other afterschool events that pertain to my specific students.
These last two areas will help me show the loyalty and priority I place on them. The classroom is
what I can control of the larger part of the whole and I should do so with knowledge of how it
will effect my particular students. Schools are the larger part of which I will have little say in at
first.
SCHOOLS
Schools have come a long way in providing education to the masses. There are several
standards used to understand what schools should accomplish and teach as a curriculum. Johnson
says that school systems will blend what employers want from graduates, what current society
wants from graduates, and what the global economy wants from graduates (Johnson 2008).
Employers are looking to hire coherent people to perform a task (Johnson 2008). I would
propose that schools should focus in three areas that are specific to the students choice. Does that
student want to have a career in a trade? Does that student want to pursue a college degree or a
professional program? Does that student posses those leadership characteristics that might lead
them down a service route such as the military, police, fire/EMT, or other academy/boot camp
based career? I feel these are important questions schools need to continuously prod students
with and ultimately set up themed curricula to facilitate job placement for the individual student
and be as appealing to the employer as possible. These are clinically called Real-World
Standards (Johnson 2008). School systems also need to allow for what society thinks students
should know as a generally based set of skills (Johnson 2008). These include reading, writing,
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PHILOSPHY PAPER 22
math, some science, American History, and other Discipline-Based/Content Standards
(Johnson 2008). Thirdly, Schools have been set up to impart what the World-Class Standards
have become (Johnson 2008). These are threefold. The first goal is that all students will have
access to information technology in their classroom, their schools, and their homes (Johnson
2008). The second goal is that all teachers will use technology effectively to help students
achieve high academic standards (Johnson 2008). Lastly in the World-Class Standards, all
students will have technology, information, and literary skills (Johnson 2008). These are
certainly very idealistic ideas about what schools should provide. Public schools have a mission
statement that is closely related to the above. They are very concerned with societal norms and
criterion (Johnson 2008). More realistic, and sad, is that schools dont have the funding nor the
parental reinforcement to propel students to their full potential. Several schools that try to
overcome these set backs through different missions, are Christian and charter schools.
Religious schools, namely Christian ones, are exceptional about blending biblical
concepts with current social norms. Their mission is more geared to a base biblical knowledge,
which I wish I had and a core set of knowledge. The Christian schools are well known for their
expensive tuition, great teachers, and overbearing religious nature. With everything there are
good points and bad. I do not disagree with Christian schools and how they run the curricula, but
I will send my kids to public schools. I feel that I will be able to spiritually lead my children in
front of God. If a parent feels that they would not be able to do this, then maybe sending them to
a Christian school is an appropriate and responsible action. There is another school that will
teach different from either public or Christian. Charter schools are great ways to open options for
your childrens education.
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Charter schools are actually Secretarian Public Schools which receive state funding but
operate independently from the regulations that a traditional public school is imposed with (Diaz
2006). Charter schools have many benefits and a mission geared more in student learning by
whatever method is necessary than by a set standard thats approved by bureaucrats. There are
increased opportunities for learning and access to quality education for all students (Diaz 2006).
They create a choice for parents and students and new opportunities for teachers to experiment
more freely with their education methods (Diaz 2006). Charter schools are exceptional outlets
that encourage community involvement and different approaches to education (Diaz 2006).
Before I heard about charter schools I wanted to teach in the public system.
Now I want to teach in a charter school system. I feel that Id have a more lenient
curriculum that I could tailor more specifically to the interests and levels of student ability.
Traditionally people talk about charter schools as alternative education schools and I feel there
would be less controversy teaching about evolution and creationism and adding little tidbits from
the bible as a viable source of wisdom. Which would simplify conveying a Christian, scientific
perspective. The two ideas do not coincide nicely in the public eye. If I were to teach in a public
school system I know Id have issues teaching biology with the evolution creationism dilemma. I
feel that I have already come to terms with how I would teach this issue in a public school
system, and I dont think I would alter it for a charter school. I have a strong belief in preparing
the ground for God to work in. I am not responsible for what a student believes. My job lays in
providing the evidence and knowledge about topics and to trust in God that He will use that
information to change their hearts for Him. Teaching about God and His truths does not
necessarily mean being overbearing and untactful. A good teacher leader will know how to
effectively convey his beliefs unobtrusively throughout the curriculum.
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CURRICULUM
When I teach the curriculum I am under no assumptions that Ill be able to teach
whatever I want. I will have to follow a set of criteria that the school district will impose as well
as state legislature. I will however be able to still teach from a Christian perspective. A lot of
what people think make a good person good stem from Christian values, they just arent called
religious because that offends people. I believe God is the source of all truth, I feel He is the only
absolute truth that we can know as humans. God created the heavens and the Earth and
everything in it (Genesis 1.1-2.3). God has hand selected me to be a teacher so that I could teach
about His amazing creation. He has crafted me in a way that will allow me to reach children and
inspire excitement in the created world around them. I will take the early scientists approach in
teaching science as a way to know creation. I have full confidence that when I get them excited
about the wonder and complexity of life that God will work on their hearts in the most
unobtrusive way and show Himself through what they study. I just have to be ready with answers
when they come to me with those special questions.
I think absolute truths should be taught in public schools and I feel that you can know
about a creator without knowing it is the creator behind it all. This may seem counter productive
to evangelicals, but if I get myself removed from a school I can no longer be that influence that
slowly chips away the edges of a students soul. An atheistic evolutionist will take my place and
then we will have lost major ground for the Kingdom of Heaven. I am to prepare the ground. I
am to use tact. I am to be a Christian role model so they can see how believers are supposed to
be. I believe I need to leave room for Gods grace and so I will. Part of teaching about absolute
truths is in separating religion and science.
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Science was explained to me by Professor Ron Meyers from Cornerstone University as
two different realms. Atheistic scientists believe in total uniformity of natural causes in a closed
system. Which means that everything that has happened on earth is caused by observable
processes, leaving no room for supernatural influences. Theistic scientists would argue for a
limited uniformity of natural causes in an open system. This means that MOST things that have
happened on earth were caused by observable processes, leaving the doors wide open for the
occasional miracle and supernatural cause. So as a Christian scientist I can believe in natural
processes and still believe that God has the power to circumnavigate them as He sees fit. Brian
Holtz agrees with me and published a paper on the web stating the misconceptions many people
have about science being an alternative to religion (Holtz 2005). It just isnt so (Holtz 2005). We
as teachers need to teach the science and be good Christian mentors and role models. God will
use His divine influence to fill in the Gaps. Specific examples are usually the best way to get this
idea across.
When working through a topic about evolution and creationism in one of my biology
classes I will teach definitions of the verbiage that is used to discuss the evolution/creation
dilemma. Ill also focus more intently on the specific icons of the debate. When we are talking
about bacteria and cells and microorganisms, well spend considerable time on the flagellum and
how it is irreducibly complex. I will let them draw their own conclusions as to the ramifications
of this knowledge, but they will know how its put together and all the parts and the ins and outs
of its anatomy. These are the items that are discussed in this particular debate and I feel its
important to have the knowledge to contribute to the conversation in an intelligible manner.
Another example would be in genetics. They will know how when species become more specific
or evolved they actually loose DNA. Id make a comment along the lines of Well then how can
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there be loss of DNA if natural selection says genes are created?Good question! Why not
everyone write a paragraph as to their thoughts on the subject, thats your ticket to leave today.
The whole debate is really quite stupid when you look at the facts and I want them to realize this.
You cannot logically teach a student to create a theory, test it, and adjust it if it is wrong then
show him examples of real scientists who create a theory, test it, and dont adjust it when it is
proven wrong. Critical thinking will be a huge part with these controversial issues. I want them
to know that one CANNOT know for certain one way or the other Its their decision, a leap of
faith. Of course I wont use that wordage, but I hope you can see how excited Id get over issues
like this. We will also utilize current articles from periodicals that show how the debate
continues and how valuable continuous learning is.
TEACHING and LEARNING
Continued learning is extremely valuable. You have to keep up with the times, it will
make life far more interesting. I walk through the woods, and I find great joy in knowing that the
thing I made scamper through the brush was a Thirteen-Lined Ground Squirrel and not a
Chipmunk. Picking out a Spring Peeper from a see of noises in the night is a very neat thing
indeed. These things put spice into the creation and helps you appreciate Gods work so much
more. Ill promote this by giving them tidbits that they can readily use and take note of in the real
world. Not to mention the good job youll get, being promoted above your peer group because of
your drive to learn more and more as you grow. This certainly helps when impressing the ladys.
Ill utilize big projects for integrated curriculum and multiple intelligences. I believe
these are extremely important in achieving engagement with all of the students. Ornstein wrote a
book on the foundations of education and says that in order to achieve learning your
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methodology should be student centered curricula (Ornstein 1997). Basically, this means stuff
they are interested in (, Nash 2005 Ornstein 1997). I will mostly teach through lecture, because
of the higher level of learning that upperclassmen need. I intend to use labs and hands on stuff as
much as possible, but these will be accents to the lecture and only for enrichment purposes. My
goal is to have a demonstration everyday, either of the topic at hand or a new topic that were
about to study. These will be short and interesting. We are studying the world around us and it
shouldnt be too difficult to find examples of the subject I wish to teach, biology. Hopefully by
showing them the cool parts of science, blowing stuff up, theyll be inspired and intrinsically
motivated. Ill use group work in labs to get them to collaborate as scientists. By varying these
demonstrations and interest areas Ill be able to reach the maximum number of my students,
100% (Diaz 2006). I feel intangibles are also important to teach while in schools.
Honesty, integrity, and hard work are the cornerstones of education and I could no worse
than to teach them only these. They will learn that it is more important in science to stay true to
your methodology and get the wrong answer than it is to cheat and skip steps and get the correct
answers. I will emphasize showing work and good scientific methods, and lab procedures. Ill
steal CFD from Dr. Fryling, Cornerstone University Professor, which means Correct For Data.
They will loose some points for getting it wrong, but if they did the work and worked through it
correctly they will receive most of their points. During some of the large projects issues may
arise dealing with controversial content.
Ill use my own judgment on the students creative expression as appropriate or
inappropriate by referring to guidelines set in the assignment. These would include no nudity,
vulgar language, racist comments, violence, etc Itll be an open clause, where Ill be the
judge of that, and the penalties will be steep. I dont foresee much of a problem with this after I
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shut off a presentation and dock 50% of their grade and will only give them those points back if
they correct the presentation and resubmit it. I dont see this being a very big issue if I am
consistent with the discipline of in class discussions. Students will be able to gage me as a
teacher and figure out what they can and cannot get away with. In Armstrongs TeachingToday:
An introduction to education he cites case no. 403, Bethel School District v. Fraser, 1986 where
the judge ruled Schools may establish standards of civil and mature conduct. (Armstrong
2009). Also any time the exertion of one persons first amendment right imposes on another
persons rights or causes unrest or violence, their freedom of expression is no longer
constitutional (Armstrong 2009). For the few individuals who just have to rile against the system
there will be consequences.
DISCIPLINE
The purpose in correcting student misbehavior is to help guide the student in his or her
understanding in what is appropriate and expected of them in society (Ryan 2008). I will hold
them to a higher degree of acceptability in my classroom, and call it professional development as
a disguise for Christian behavior. Again, in my experience, its Gods responsibility to knock on
the childs heart. I simply show the picture and am there for support and prodding. Before any
disciplinary action can be doled out a set of explicit, clear, concise, and reasonable rules must be
posted and ensured that they are understood (Ryan 2008). Classroom rules are put in place to
provide a basis to refer to. So that everything is on the table from the very beginning. Students
will know exactly what is to be expected of them. As I model this explanation of rules and
procedures, my students will be able to recall how a leader acted in this realm. It is unjust to
punish someone for something they didnt know they werent supposed to do. They will know
right from wrong and what is acceptable. Rules for my classroom will include:
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1. Severe point penalties for late assignments2. Only specific questions will be answered3. Assignments are due in my box on my desk as soon as you walk in, all others are late4. No cell phones allowed5. Emergency bathroom use only, one person at a time; Ill have a big goofy looking hall
pass
6. Sharpen pencils at will; pencil sharpener is in the back7. All had written assignments must be in pencil8.
Raise your hand to speak
These are not inclusive, but talking with other teachers these are a spackling of ideas I felt would
be important. Now that students know what I expect of them, they need to be given what
happens when they disappoint me. My disciplinary structure is three fold with a caveat for severe
cases:
1. Verbal chagrin in front of the class, on the spot. Used to keep the class in line. Everyonewill see that I am firm and fair and that I actually care what the rules are. This is referred
to as the Ripple Effect (Ryan 2008).
2. Staying after class for the one on one approach so I can determine if something else isgoing on. This will help me determine which stimuli are provoking the behavior and I can
make an effort to remove them (Ryan 2008).
3. The phone call home, or detention. This is dependent on what became of level two. Thephone call home is to both let the parent know whats going on and to see if there are
issues at home that I need to be concerned with.
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4. SEVERE: This could be a dock in grade, suspension. I may have to defer to school policyhere. If it is so bad it may be out of my hands what the consequences are. I would rather
keep them at my level.
These rules I feel are very solid. I followed the same principles while in the service as a
Sergeant of Marines. I found that when you pulled them out of the situation and had a one on one
conversation to figure out what is really going on I got amazing results. You do two things when
you do this. You let them know you care about them and you foster a relationship. As a general
rule I like constructive outlets and think the punishments should fit the crime. If the student was
misbehaving in lab, I can find something in lab for him or her to clean after school. I could also
drag the student out to the field and make them put time in as a team manager, this would allow
me to get closer to the student and help mentor them. It might even get them interested in the
sport and allow for a permanent constructive outlet for the extra energy they feel the need to
share during class. Its still all about the relationships that a teacher leader should foster with his
or her students.
CONLUSION
Being a teacher leader is a powerful calling that effects every aspect of how I teach and
what I believe about schools, the curricula, disciplining, and the all important relation that a
teacher cultivates with his students. As we unpacked what a teacher leader was, I hope many
aspects jive with your life and with your perspective of what exactly we are accomplishing as we
mold the next generation of teacher leaders. I hope you strive be a person of excellent character
and hope you understand how important your influence is. The whole philosophy of being a
teacher leader deals with being a person of great character and having a solid stance in God.
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Remember what Solomon writes in Proverbs 22.6 Train a child in the way he should go, and
when he is old he will not turn from it. This is quite the calling. We will have a lasting influence
on those that come into our classrooms, we must do right by them.
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References
Armstrong, D.G., Henson, K.J., & Savage, T.V. (2009). Teaching Today: An introduction to
education (8th Edition). Columbus, OH: Pearson plc.
The Bible.
Damon, W. (October 2008). The Moral North Star.Educational Leadership, 66, 2, 8-12.
Diaz, C.F., Pelletier, C.M., & Provenzo Jr., E.F. (2006). Touch the Future Teach! Boston, MA:
Pearson Education, Inc.
Holtz. B., (July 2005). Human Knowledge: Foundations and limits.Human Knowledge.net.
Retrieved April 29, 2009, from http://humanknowledge.net/Thoughts.html
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