In my Intro to Higher Ed class last semester, one of the first assignments we were given was to create a philosophy of education. Pressed for time and lacking inspiration, I struggled to come up with enough information to satisfy the rubric requirements. But I actually want to dig deeper and generate a philosophy of education that I can use in the “real world,” one that informs my practice now and in the future. I developed a teaching philosophy in my undergraduate years, but that’s when I thought I’d be teaching high school English. As I’ve grown and matured as a graduate student, so have my ideas about education. And as someone who wants to work in university student services, I won’t necessarily be in a “traditional” classroom, so what does a philosophy of education look like for me?

These are some questions I’ll be mulling over while I tease out this whole philosophy thing:

• Is there a difference between a philosophy of teaching and a philosophy of education?
• What education and student development theories inform my philosophy?
• If I’m not in the classroom, where does pedagogy come into play? Professional responsibility?

Saving these articles to read more in depth.

• Chronicle of Higher Education: How to Write a Statement of Teaching Philosophy
• Writing your own Educational Philosophy
• Cornell University Graduate School: Teaching Philosophy Statement
• Julian Hermida: Philosophy of Higher Education Leadership