Michael Polk's Teaching Philosophy

My Personal Beliefs Regarding Teaching and Learning

I believe that we need to teach to the whole child and address their spiritual, mental and physical needs. We must accommodate each student by allowing them to perform at their personal best. I feel that by making learning fun we can keep students engaged and motivate them for success.

Students need to be able to assimilate information from the material that they have learned and discuss it in a clear and concise manner. Information that students learn simply to memorize it for a test and then forget it, is not the type of knowledge that I want students to gain from my teaching.

Our classroom environment should be open for exploration and discovery to accommodate all the ways that students learn. We should provide visual, audio and hands-on learning opportunities for each child. This enables them to gain confidence and become more proficient students. We must prepare our students with the social and important life skill training that they will use to become productive, service orientated members of society.

Our classroom door should always be open for parents to nurture the all important parent-teacher relationship. This partnership is the key to gain parent trust for the overall success of the student. It is essential to have open communication with the parent so that either the parent or the teacher can initiate a conversation. This is very important in preschool as we begin to foster the relationship that the parent will have with the school for many years to come.
Strong leadership should come from the Principal and administrative staff and flow all the way through each staff member. This leadership should be reflective of the school’s mission statement and demonstrate clear and concise plans that support your school’s educational goals. Your staff should have a mentoring plan that builds strong relationships and encourages support of one another. This support and a true caring environment will deepen the overall strength of your staff and will enhance the learning environment for all students.

Effective teaching is building a relationship between students, teachers, parents and staff. We must provide a quality educational experience where all students can succeed in a loving and caring environment. Each one of us remembers that one teacher that made a difference in our lives and helped shape the person that we became as an adult. My goal is to be that kind of teacher for each of my students and help them grow into the strong and productive adults that will be our future community leaders.