About Me

My name is Tomeka and I am currently a junior at Old Dominion University. I was born and raised in Norfolk, Virginia, but my family eventually moved and I attended high school in Hampton, Virginia. I major in biology and I minor in education here at the University. I’ve always had a passion for helping people out, whether young or old; it feels good to know you’ve made a difference in somebody’s day. That’s when I realized that being an educator might just be on the path I had been searching for ever since I was in high school. The world is getting more hectic everyday; the best place to start is with our children, because they are our future. I never believed when people told me that I was their future it would be so true today. Here I am in college trying to make a better future for myself and inevitably someone else as well. I try to be the good example that I never had: to other people. Little did I know that my teachers were going to have an effect on me in so many ways?


Philosophy of Education

• A good teacher is one that listens to their students

• Treat the classroom as a growth and developmental environment. Be as open with the students as they are with you. (School does not just teach academics, it teaches an early form of responsibility. Going to school, studying, being on time, interacting with other people (good/bad), and it teaches discipline.)

• As far as diversity, I think that students should never be separated into groups. As far as separation is concerned inside of the same school. (Boys vs. Girls, ADD vs. Non ADD, good abilities vs. poor abilities.) As soon as children are made out to be different from their peers, intimidation and uneasy feelings may come over a child. Children should never be made to feel different because ultimately we are all the same. Social or biological factors don’t make us different , it makes us who we are and we all could never be the same so what is there to strive for, being similar? Every child should feel ok with just being themselves, and separation only proves that there was a problem before.

- Alternative schools that focus on an individual group of students, that helps and Provides a better learning environment for kids that need it is great.

• I would highly recommend group assignments. Lecturing can only last for a certain amount of time before a student loses interest. Group work will keep the students communicating and active hands on work and it gives teachers a little break.

• Being involved with other teachers is a must. As long as all the teachers are on the same page, their students are on the same page with the other students. It’s a way of making sure everybody is understanding and progressing with each other. If there is a problem amongst teachers, they all can relate because they’re on the same page and as well for the students.

• Schools reflecting their communities Vs. National curriculum. Everyone deserves to be on the same page as everyone else. That way there is no feeling of inferiority or a feeling of being different, we all shall be equal. If schools reflected their communities then some people might not learn to be successful and prosper, all because of the neighborhood they live in, in which they could not help. You cannot help where you’ve come from the only thing a person or child can control is where they’re going. A national curriculum should definitely be implemented, that way everyone would have to same opportunities. It will guarantee that no matter where you are or where you come from you are as equal as the person standing next to you. You would know just as much as him, if there was a national curriculum.