Philosophy of Literacy and Teaching

Northcentral University

Philosophy of Literacy and Teaching All Students

Every since I was a very young child, reading has been a very integral part of my life. I believe that reading begins at the home before formal education begins, but when a child enters school, reading education is by far the most important part of a child’s learning process. Although I have taught Science for six years this school year (2014-2015) will be the first year in a classroom of my own that I serve in the capacity as a Literacy teacher (ELA) my philosophy of reading instruction is very preliminary. However, these are the ides I have developed through reading chapters one and two in “Gunning, T., & Gunning, T. (2005). Creating Literacy Instruction for All Students.” Through the readings I know the methods of teaching reading should be varied and used to guide optimal student achievement. Reading is a multifaceted procedure through which the student creates significance from the writing. Gibbons (2002, p. 81) suggests, “As a text participant, the reader connects the text with his or her own background knowledge - including knowledge of the world, cultural knowledge, and knowledge of the generic structure...” Then it is vital that the teacher takes into consideration the social contextual connections of their students, whilst understanding that texts are developed with the supposition that students are aware of the social features of the story or materials presented. Also I found the procedure of learning to read differs with each student. Students must be given the tool of reading in order to continue to attain information. Students will use these tools during their lifetime to learn, explore information for the fulfillment and enjoyment to understand the world.

Personal List of Beliefs and Teaching Practices

According to Gibbons (2002) students need access to a variety of expressive reading approaches to bring to the progression of reading, and a literacy program that...