Linda Waltersdorf Cobourn

Personal Statement of Teaching Philosophy

Education is a fascinating process. I discovered reading at the age of four and I have
hardly put down a book since. I believe that learning should be an ongoing process,
one that we continue to engage in throughout our lives and careers. Studies have
shown that teachers who are involved in quality professional development increase
the academic productivity of their students. The first step towards building a
successful classroom environment, at any grade level, is for the teacher to model
both the pursuit of and appreciation for education.

My first classroom was composed of a group of teddy bears, all quiet students who
listened attentively to the teacher, me. But a living classroom does not depend
solely upon the teacher, but on the collaboration of all in the pursuit of learning.
This builds the strength of a learning community and gives the students a sense of
camaraderie. Students can try out various roles within the living organism of the
learning community.

Reading was my first love. I have chosen to make literacy the focus of my research
due to the lack of emphasis on critical literacy skills after the elementary school
years. The reality is that not all students learn to read adequately by fifth grade and
even those readers who are proficient in grade school are subject to challenges
when the literacy skills in middle, high school, and college become increasing
demanding.

Considering the increasingly complex literacy skills that will be demanded of our
students in the 21st century, it is imperative that we explicitly teach not only basic
reading and decoding, but analysis, synthesis, and reflection. Expert teachers are
needed to model and instruct students of all levels and all abilities through
differentiation, strategic support, and individual tutoring. As an experienced
teacher, reading specialist, and researcher in the field of literacy, I have the ability
and the tools to teach students at all venues of their academic pursuits.

Students who are successful need to be engaged in their work; good teachers find
ways to motivate students and build self-efficacy. I believe in the constructivist
theory of learning, with students building their own understanding in conjunction
with their background.

The opportunity to pursue education is a gift. The opportunity to help others in their
own pursuits is a joy. I have spent most of my own life in quest of education,
working up to the level of doctoral student and learning much about myself as both
an educator and a person in the process. Students must be encouraged to
appreciate and advocate for their own education and the education of others if our
country and our world is to move forward into the 21 st century without repeating the
patterns of the past.