Diana Valds

The Statement of Teaching Philosophy

I believe that my students come to my class because of a genuine interest in the

subject and with the hope of learning more than the content in the book. They come with

open hearts and minds, and as an educator, I aim to meet the expectations of those students

who come with a hope to fall in love with the language I teach. I hope to infect those students

who do not come with this mentality with the desire and passion that is abundant in my

lessons. I hope to create a passion for my subject in my students and to give them all the

tools they need to learn. I aim to do this by being relentless, by being understanding and by

allowing students to use the language as much as possible in real life situations. The love for

a language does not come from grammar drills, but from the use of the language and the

understanding of the cultures that the language embodies. I allow students to practice

grammatical structures by focusing on form because as Brandl states, the focus on form

teaches grammar within contexts and through communicative tasks. (Brandl 19)

It is important to use task based activities and contextualized subjects, since it is

definitely more meaningful for the student to learn vocabulary, grammatical concepts and

pronunciation related to the same situation and space. As authors Nassaji and Fotos (2011)

explain, focus on form is especially effective when it is incorporated into meaningful

communicative contexts (p.vii).

I will attempt to help my students overcome the struggles of learning a new language,

and provide the elements that the student needs to have effective communication in the L2.

Knowledge of the native (L1) language is a natural process and it is learned through the

constant interaction in daily activities. Learning a second language should be viewed the

same way. There is no need to follow strict patterns, but rather use language with the idea of

improving communication. It is my intension to make the class a source of concepts that the
student can apply in his or her daily activities to interact and develop communicative skills.

Based in the Communicative Language Teaching Methods (CLT), where the goal is to make

use of real life situations that necessitate communication (Brandl, 2008, p.5) the teacher will

guide the students through task based activities.

When I teach, student centered activities are my main focus since student interactions

and subsequently output are the objective of my class. A class focused on the teacher does

not give the students the opportunity to evaluate themselves. It is important for the students to

have a guide but not a lecturer. Farrell and Jacobs (2010) reference the importance of

allowing the students to be autonomous, teachers need to be more flexible in allowing this

[student control of their own language] and thus become true facilitators of learning (p.26).

It is important in this sense to encourage students to collaborate and help each other, since

studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of working with peers when learning a second

language. As stated in Peer Interaction and Second Language Learning, One reason that

peer interaction has been advocated in language classrooms is because it is different from

teacher-learner interaction and, therefore, allows for different types of language use and

practice. (Philp 2)

I believe that the use of the target language is vital in the process of learning a second

language in order to fulfill meaningful output. In my classes I have the intention to appeal to

the students curiosity and desire to communicate their ideas and thoughts in the second

language, to develop language and cultural proficiency. I believe it is important to allow

students to express themselves and thus build the bond between them and the content. The

use of the first language is be reduced to five percent of the class, and the students or teacher

should only utilize it in moments of clarification, homework assignments and comprehension

checks. As mentioned by Douglass Crouse (2012) in his article, How to Stay in the Target
Language, its important to educate students on proficiency targets and have them to set

reasonable, measurable goals. Group discussions in the target language and individual

feedback sessions can then offer an opportunity for personal connections with students. (25)

Assessing a students needs in the classroom is also a vital part of conducting a lesson

and it is crucial to provide various ways in which students can express or demonstrate their

needs. It is essential to understand your students and to provide the various styles within your

classroom as a part of your lesson. Once I have done this I must cater my lesson so that it

touches on the needs of the students. One must always be aware of the reactions students

have to a lesson. I achieve this by reading the room and understanding the cues that the

students provide. This is part of a student centered environment and can help determine the

success of your students. The requirements and goals for a course should always be known

and attainable to each student so that each may create his or her own path there.

Finally, I believe that my students will learn not only the content but the passion for

my subject through my methods of using authentic materials and using the target language. I

will use the most natural means possible to produce language and communicate in my

classroom and I will provide my students the tools they need to succeed not only in my

classroom but also in the real world as a Spanish speaker.

Brandl, K. (2008). Communicative language teaching in action: Putting principles to work.

Douglass, C. (2012). Going for 90% plus: How to Stay in the Target Language. The
language educator. October, p. 22-27. Retrieved from

Farrell, T. S. C. & Jacobs, G. M. (2010). Essentials for successful English language teaching.
London, UK: Continuum.

Nassaji, H. & Fotos, S. S. (2011). Teaching Grammar in Second Language Classrooms:

Philp, J., Adams, R. & Iwashita, N. (2013). Peer Interaction and Second Language Learning.