How Did I Grow?
I grew up in the sleepy little farm town of Three Oaks, Michigan, where I lived for more than thirty years, and I graduated as the Valedictorian from small high school back in 1992, in a town seven miles away – New Buffalo. My graduating class was the largest class to ever graduate from Heritage. I had five classmates.
While looking through papers to prepare my long-awaited return to college after 15 years of raising children and working alternative careers, I came across a pencil-written notebook sheet titled “An English Teacher Should…” that I had written back in junior high. I remembered writing the list, to save for my adult self so I would have some insight and youthful perspective on the teaching career that I had hoped would be my path at that time of my life. Now, I am excited to bring some of the points on that list to fruition, and to come full-circle with my childhood career dream.
After a seven-year stint as a newspaper editor in my hometown of Three Oaks, I opted to finish my bachelor’s degree and heed my long-time calling to be a teacher. As a former editor, I have considerable life experience to offer, and I am excited about sharing that experience with students through teaching. During my editorship, I often tried to recruit students as correspondents. Many of them were excellent writers, and I was very proud that I could mentor them and provide them with a real audience for their work. But I also saw a need in education: a need for teachers who are in touch with the opportunities offered by their own communities; teachers who will equip students to take advantages of these opportunities in their learning process. I would like to show my future students the value of real-life projects that will enhance traditional learning methods.
Other experiences that show my community involvement and scholastic achievement include serving as the Vice President for the Harbor Country Chamber of Commerce in 2007; being a member of Sigma Tau Delta, Alpha Nu Pi Chapter of the English Honor Society at Western Michigan University; volunteering in my church youth group; and being named to the Dean’s List several times throughout my college career. Also, I had the opportunity to be an actual college professor in the fall of 2011 when I taught English 1000 at Western Michigan University. This was an incredible opportunity to put into practice all that I have learned about teaching, and I discovered that this actual classroom immersion proved to be the most rewarding and educating experience so far. Other classroom experience includes my current position as a high school English, Journalism I, and Yearbook teacher at Key West High School. Before that, I was an English, yearbook, and speech teacher at Westville High School in Indiana; my internship at Buchanan High School, where I taught English Language Arts in Becky Adkerson's eighth grade classroom during the spring of 2012; and my pre-internship at Mattawan High School in Lori Fulton’s Language Arts, Journalism, and Creative Writing classes in the fall of 2010. One of the biggest lessons I have learned through my experiences so far is the importance of creating a caring classroom community, because what I do as a teacher has the potential to leave lasting impressions on my students. I hope the lessons I teach will not only help my students with their educational futures, but also with their individual lives.
One of the lasting impressions an English teacher left on me from my high school days was the desire to become a teacher. Because she stimulated my creative and literary abilities, this teacher inspired me to share my excitement for English, writing, and literature. In fact, this teacher was also the reason I wrote that old list of 43 items to incorporate when I became a teacher that I mentioned at the beginning of this story: I wanted my future self to remember what I felt was effective in the classroom as a young teen. To wrap it all up, my philosophy of teaching can be summed up by the number one requirement on that list I wrote twenty years ago: “never show favoritism.” In a world with so many inequalities and pre-judgments, I hope to be a shining advocate of fairness and social justice and grow these ideals in my classroom.
While looking through papers to prepare my long-awaited return to college after 15 years of raising children and working alternative careers, I came across a pencil-written notebook sheet titled “An English Teacher Should…” that I had written back in junior high. I remembered writing the list, to save for my adult self so I would have some insight and youthful perspective on the teaching career that I had hoped would be my path at that time of my life. Now, I am excited to bring some of the points on that list to fruition, and to come full-circle with my childhood career dream.
After a seven-year stint as a newspaper editor in my hometown of Three Oaks, I opted to finish my bachelor’s degree and heed my long-time calling to be a teacher. As a former editor, I have considerable life experience to offer, and I am excited about sharing that experience with students through teaching. During my editorship, I often tried to recruit students as correspondents. Many of them were excellent writers, and I was very proud that I could mentor them and provide them with a real audience for their work. But I also saw a need in education: a need for teachers who are in touch with the opportunities offered by their own communities; teachers who will equip students to take advantages of these opportunities in their learning process. I would like to show my future students the value of real-life projects that will enhance traditional learning methods.
Other experiences that show my community involvement and scholastic achievement include serving as the Vice President for the Harbor Country Chamber of Commerce in 2007; being a member of Sigma Tau Delta, Alpha Nu Pi Chapter of the English Honor Society at Western Michigan University; volunteering in my church youth group; and being named to the Dean’s List several times throughout my college career. Also, I had the opportunity to be an actual college professor in the fall of 2011 when I taught English 1000 at Western Michigan University. This was an incredible opportunity to put into practice all that I have learned about teaching, and I discovered that this actual classroom immersion proved to be the most rewarding and educating experience so far. Other classroom experience includes my current position as a high school English, Journalism I, and Yearbook teacher at Key West High School. Before that, I was an English, yearbook, and speech teacher at Westville High School in Indiana; my internship at Buchanan High School, where I taught English Language Arts in Becky Adkerson's eighth grade classroom during the spring of 2012; and my pre-internship at Mattawan High School in Lori Fulton’s Language Arts, Journalism, and Creative Writing classes in the fall of 2010. One of the biggest lessons I have learned through my experiences so far is the importance of creating a caring classroom community, because what I do as a teacher has the potential to leave lasting impressions on my students. I hope the lessons I teach will not only help my students with their educational futures, but also with their individual lives.
One of the lasting impressions an English teacher left on me from my high school days was the desire to become a teacher. Because she stimulated my creative and literary abilities, this teacher inspired me to share my excitement for English, writing, and literature. In fact, this teacher was also the reason I wrote that old list of 43 items to incorporate when I became a teacher that I mentioned at the beginning of this story: I wanted my future self to remember what I felt was effective in the classroom as a young teen. To wrap it all up, my philosophy of teaching can be summed up by the number one requirement on that list I wrote twenty years ago: “never show favoritism.” In a world with so many inequalities and pre-judgments, I hope to be a shining advocate of fairness and social justice and grow these ideals in my classroom.
Other Stories from the Real:
ABOVE: Claudia Patterson (pictured with me at right), one of my students wrote a short story for my class, and one of my big writing goals as an English teacher is to have my students write for REAL AUDIENCES, so I encouraged students to submit their short stories to a writing contest at Columbia College in Chicago. We were so pleased when Claudia WON the contest! Having a student recognized as a finalist in the prestigious Colombia College Chicago Young Authors writing competition for her short story titled "Lips Like Tangerine" was very rewarding for me as a teacher as well. She will be awarded either first, second, or third place out of over 1,100 submissions that Columbia College referred to as "phenomenal quality" on May 7, 2016 at the college downtown Chicago.
(L-R) Trent, David, and Dakota at the "Made in LaPorte County" field trip for my Basic Skills classes. Students were introduced to various businesses in the local community and were able to ask questions and interact with business owners to explore potential future careers. Students really enjoyed the opportunity to learn from the "real." This field trip was valuable because it gave students ideas of things they might be interested in, and they obtained information specific to their individual goals. One student, Alexis, commented that it was the first field trip she had been on since 8th grade, and that she really enjoyed getting to interact with people from many different local businesses.
Yearbook students on our annual field trip to the Jostens Yearbook Workshop (L-R) top row: me, Cassie Bartley, Rebecca Polchlopek, Sydnie Chasko, Sabrian Bryan, Ana Gubic, and Halie Riffett. Bottom row: Hannah Walker, Brianna Garrison, and Savannah Culp. This is a close-knit group that I have had the pleasure of teaching and mentoring as part of the yearbook program that begins in their early upperclassmen years.
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A reflection on conducting a writing workshop
(L-R) Me, Erica, and Terence at our end of class celebration for English 1000, a class I taught at Western Michigan University the fall semester of 2011.After our experience together, Erica wrote on my Facebook page: "Just wanted to say thank you again for everything! You may not have realized it but you have helped me through things in life and helped me with my future! Can not wait to hear what feedback you have for me on my project."
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A reflection on my first education class
Students enjoy an impromptu outdoor music lesson at Westville High school.
music_in_communication_com5600_censored.doc | |
File Size: | 72 kb |
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How teaching English 1000 affected my communication philosophy in the classroom