Caridad Alonso
Delaware Teacher of the Year
William C. Lewis Dual Language Elementary, Wilmington
Grades K-5, Spanish Reading

My teaching philosophy
My philosophy of education is a student-centered one. I see myself as a facilitator of the learning process. I take a constructivist view in that I believe students construct knowledge as they build new ideas upon existing experiences. My students take an active part in class by discussing and sharing their points of view. Students work collaboratively with others, as well as on their own. I facilitate learning by sharing knowledge and asking questions, as well as trying to get everyone involved in seeking the answers.

My philosophy in action
I strongly believe that every child has learning potential and, with effective instruction, it can be unleashed. In my classroom, I use a variety of instructional strategies in order to address varying learning styles. I isolate each child’s learning needs and customize instruction so that every child will benefit. Therefore, no child is ever left behind. My goal is to provide my students with rich learning experiences. Moreover, I have high standards of academic achievement for each and every one of my students.

My greatest teaching accomplishment
My greatest teaching accomplishments, after eleven years of teaching, are the cognitive, social, and emotional gains my students make each year, the creation of the Spanish Garden Pre-K through first grade foreign language immersion school, and the opportunity to provide professional development in second language literacy and learning to all teachers in the Red Clay Consolidated School District in Wilmington, Delaware.

The most critical issues facing educators today
In the United States, the increase of culturally and linguistically diverse students has been dramatic and is expected to remain so. Currently, Hispanics are the fastest growing immigrant population and the poorest achieving academic group (Lopez, 2004). National concern regarding low literacy achievement levels and disproportionately high educational drop out rates among Hispanic students has given rise to major school reform in the United States. The primary issue at hand is how to rapidly get non-English speakers to become academically successful in English. Educators and policymakers alike are strongly divided about whether English immersion or bilingual programs work best.

Ways to resolve this issue
Teaching linguistically and culturally diverse students requires knowledge of the progression of second language development, as well as teaching methods that promote rapid, complete, and simultaneous acquisition of basic conversational and academic language. Research shows that instruction in the first language can significantly improve academic achievement in the acquisition of the second language (Cummins, 2006). I have found that increasing literacy achievement in my student’s native language has assisted them tremendously in acquiring high levels of literacy development in English. Students are able to cross transfer language literacy skills from the first language to the second language. For this reason, if it all possible schools should provide academic instruction in the student’s home language. Biliteracy must become a viable and essential component of educational reform with respect to our underachieving Hispanic population. In the absence of critical biliteracy, it is my conviction that the pattern of school failure for numerous Hispanic students will continue to prevail.

One thought to inspire teachers to succeed
Teachers are the key. The best investment you can make is in the education of a child. Our nation’s future largely depends on the collective commitment of our teachers to transform our educational system into a culture that values education and invests in all its children to achieve academic excellence. Transforming the culture of our educational system is the most important contribution that we, as teachers, must initiate and execute if we are to survive as a viable country in a highly competitive 21st century global community.

One lesson every student should learn
One lesson every teacher must ingrain in each and every one of their students is that, regardless of race, cultural background, socio-economic status, linguistic proficiency or legal status, everyone belongs, everyone deserves a chance, everyone is significant and everyone is deserving of an excellent education.

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