I believe in taking a holistic approach to teaching, understanding my students as individuals with different needs based on their identities, before understanding them as a student in my classroom. Through this holistic approach I aim to create a student centered classroom that demonstrates the importance of empathy and social understanding through the lens of  the science content. I aim to foster an environment where students feel comfortable and encouraged in engaging with the scientific process highlighting values of equity and agency in the classroom. 

 

In order to promote these aspects of agency, equity and identity, it is imperative that all students have access to the science curriculum being presented. To do so I incorporate my students’ lived histories, cultures, and languages into the curriculum as much as possible, utilizing culturally relevant and culturally sustaining anchoring phenomena that align with students’ identities as well as the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). In conjunction with these relevant anchoring phenomena, I also incorporate a variety of different literacy strategies, as when the two are used in tandem with one another students move from shallow memorization of science concepts to deep sense making and synthesis of how scientific process and concepts work in their everyday lives. Furthermore, in order to encourage student understanding, furthering student self-efficacy and thus, access to the science curriculum, I am a firm believer in providing students with the tools needed to engage in the process of metacognition. This allows students to understand how their perceptions of science impact how they see themselves in their science classrooms and beyond. By equipping students with the ability to engage in the act of metacognition, it is my goal to help students develop a growth mindset.

 

Ultimately, as a Life Sciences teacher, I believe in understanding all aspects of my students' identities and ensuring that these aspects are reflected in the material they are presented with in class as this allows students to engage with the curriculum in deeper and more meaningful ways.