My teaching philosophy is founded on the firm belief that student success should always be based on merit and hard work. To transition this to the classroom within the International Baccalaureate environment, I align my teaching practice with the philosophies of social constructivism and the Cognitive Load Theory. My travels as an exchange student and my previous IT background both serve as a foundational influence in teaching mathematics.

I also use Vygotsky’s social development theory by implementing random groups of three. I have used some of the material presented by Peter Liljedahl to connect this to my teaching approach. This essentially creates a “zone of proximal development”, where students from various backgrounds interact, using a universal language imposed by mathematics, to solve problems as a group. This directly links practices from the IB attribute of being internationally minded via the established norm and expectation that students respect perspectives that may not align with their own.

In addition, I use the Illustrative Mathematics curriculum, which supports inquiry-based learning and serves as a guide rather than a pre-canned set of directions for students. Having a curriculum as a guide allows students to use their own agency to support their learning. Curriculum, as a guide, provides an example of linking student self-determination to support the development of their motivation and ability to navigate mathematical concepts.

By establishing a social contract and ensuring heavy differentiation in instruction and scaffolding, all students are enabled to take risks and own their academic outcomes. Additionally, by outlining classroom expectations and teacher-student boundaries, I create a safe environment for learning. Examples of these boundaries include no tolerance for bullying or laughing at other students' answers, respect for all, treating each other as you wish to be treated, and the expectation of effort. My ability to be consistent with these principles enables students to take risks, which is a key attribute of the IB learner profile and a merit-based philosophy.

My role as a teacher helps encourage learners to see that failure has intrinsic value in their learning journey and can be used to reinforce that failure helps students become successful. These theories and my high expectations foster students who are actually ready for college and for life in general.