As I was trying to decide what I wanted to do with the rest of my life, I had many different options in mind. I had always hated school, so I would have never imagined that I would be here, studying to become a teacher. I believe that the experiences and teachers I had throughout my schooling is what ultimately led me to become passionate about being a teacher. I had many good and bad teachers, all that I still remember to this day. I aspire to be that teacher that every child remembers 20 years down the road because I had such a good impact on them and changed the way they view school.
The pedagogy that I look up to the most would be those of Vygotsky because I mean, who couldn’t like him?! One of the most important things I believe that he has developed is the Zone of Proximal Development. As a teacher, it is important to know each one of your students and their needs. The ZPD helps explain where each child is at and what they need help with. His theories help us understand the development of children and where they fall. Without his knowledge and input we would not know many things that we do today as educators and the best practices for our students.
I am learning all about the why and hows of this field from the different professors I have had throughout my time here at Millersville. I have also learned a lot from other teachers that I know and teachers that I had when I was younger and still keep in touch with because I have helped in their classrooms. I learn different things from the theorists as well, which are who is really shaping who I am becoming as a teacher.
Almost everybody in my life shares new insights with me in many different ways. The majority of insights I get are from my professors and fellow colleagues in this field. I learn a lot from my co workers at the daycare I work at because we all come from different experiences and background. It’s exciting because I teach them many different things as well since I am one of the few people that works there that is studying in the education field. I am thrilled to continue my path on becoming an educator and making the world a better place!