Lukjanenko Natalja Sergeevna: My pedagogical credo
I think that a pedagogic credo can be defined as a statement of the beliefs or aims that guide teacher's actions. In my opinion, to develop a confident child is the major task of teachers. Before the child finishes school, teachers must strengthen the child's ego, to the extent that the child can comfortably get along without parents’ and teachers’ help.
"Confident" comes from the Latin word, meaning "to trust thoroughly". Teachers need to give the child two basic ingredients: LOVE and A SENSE OF WORTH. Only in this case a child will learn to be confident, to trust thoroughly both himself and others.
First of all, the child needs to be loved by another person and to love another person as well as himself or herself. Children need warm human touch and embrace, beginning with the newborn baby and continuing throughout each stage of life.
Secondly, children need acceptance, acceptance whether one is tall or short, smart or not - so-brilliant, rich or poor, girl or boy, ill or well, etc. To accept a child means to understand him or her. The process is known as empathy - the capacity to imagine how another human being feels. Empathy tells a child that he is understood, and this is great support and comfort for a child. Empathy is a powerful means of translating love into action. By putting yourself in child's shoes, you let him know that he is an important person worthy of trust and understanding.
Also, children need encouragement and praise for all the things that they do well. But of course, a teacher should remember that encouragement becomes powerful encouragement and criticism becomes crippling criticism - when coming from one who is an Important Person in the life of a child such as a teacher. If a child is constantly being criticized by adults, it is a miracle if a child survives prolonged criticism with any ego strength left at all. If other people criticize him his ego - slowly but surely -becomes weaker and weaker, and he may never be able to stand alone in the world. If other people encourage him, praise him, his ego - slowly but surely -grows strong enough to stand up by itself, strong enough to take care of itself in the world. The child then thinks and feels, “I am lovable”.
What’s more, the child needs to do worthwhile things, which will give a sense of personal worth. A sense of worth can belong to the child if teachers help the child to do worthwhile things. The child needs a generous amount of teachers and parents discipline, at first, which gradually will develop into self-discipline. Maturing is actually the process by which discipline becomes internalized, after having first been imposed on the growing children outside. So the discipline helps a child to achieve his goals and the child then thinks and feels, “I am capable”.
In the conclusion I want to say that the main task for a teacher is to prepare a child for future. It means to teach a child how to behave in different situations, how to use his abilities and capabilities, how to find and use information. So, if a child feels and thinks that he is lovable and capable he is ready to acquire necessary knowledge. That’s why, in my opinion the pedagogic credo of any teacher is to give a child love and a sense of worth.