2. Core Values 2
Over the course of my education journey I have been able to develop an idea of the
values I would like to instil in my students, classroom, and myself. There are so many important
values that I hope to carry into the classroom but there are three that I believe are extremely
important. Community, respect, and collaboration are the values most desirable for me to convey
in my future teaching endeavors.
“A nurturing community is a place where it is safe to be yourself” (Sapon-Shevin, 2010,
p.22). By striving to build a sense of community students will feel safe, be willing to
communicate openly, build trust, and connect to one another. After working to build a
community in my own learning experiences it has been very beneficial in providing the
characteristics previously listed. By meeting these characteristics the community will provide the
feeling that each student is a part of the classroom and they are valued as a member of the
community. Sapon-Shevin (2010, p. 24) states, “together we are better; together we are
stronger.” I find this to be completely true. Creating a classroom community will be a stepping
stone in creating stronger and knowledgeable students.
Within the community there needs to be respect. Students should respect themselves,
their peers, the teacher, your family, property, rules, differences, and the school environment.
Every value and opinion should be heard and respected. That does not mean that every student
will agree on a value or opinion but they should listen to everyone’s values or opinions without
judgment. By showing respect among one another it helps encourage students to speak their
mind and express their thoughts. Students should always think to treat others how you wish to be
treated. We need respect to collaborate and to have a peaceful classroom.
3. Core Values 3
In class there has been much discussion on working together and building on each other’s
strengths. This would be classified as collaboration. “Some teachers have the advantage of being
able to work with colleagues, either as teachers together in the same classroom or as teachers
who work across classrooms collaboratively” (Chaillẻ, 2008, p.54). Not only is it important for
the teacher to collaborate with fellow teachers, parents, and students but for students to
collaborate with their peers. Working as one and working as a community, is what I hope to
achieve with collaboration. Boaler (2008) stated, “that students often need to talk [collaborate]
through methods to know whether they really understand them” (p. 46). From reading Boaler, I
feel very strongly that students can become more successful academically by working with each
other to gain understanding of subject matter.
Within my classroom I plan to follow these values and to instil them in my students. We
will work together to build a strong sense of community, respect each other, and collaborate to
set the students up for success. I believe my classroom environment will reach new heights with
these three values.
4. Core Values 4
References
Boaler, J. (2009). What's math got to do with it?: How parents and teachers can help children
learn to love their least favorite subject. New York: Penguin Books.
Chaillé, C. (2008). Constructivism across the curriculum in early childhood classrooms: Big
ideas as inspiration. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
Sapon-Shevin, M. (2010). Because we can change the world: A practical guide to building
cooperative, inclusive classroom communities (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, Calif: Corwin
Press.
