Like so many, I felt an undeniable call to action after watching Davis Guggenheim’s film Waiting for Superman. The film poignantly illustrates the imperative need for a long overdue paradigm shift in American education. In the film, activist, educator and founder of the Harlem Children’s Zone, Geoffrey Canada, shares the disillusionment he felt as a child upon realizing that Superman was not coming to save him from the perils of his impoverished South Bronx neighborhood. His message in the film is that we must become our own superheroes. Although the challenges are multifaceted, I am convinced that key to shifting the paradigm of our educational system, is to restructure how we get teachers into classrooms and how we support them once they
…show more content…
My classroom program was based on the belief that children learn best when they actively participate in the construction of their knowledge. I take great pride that my students grew to know the value of collaboration, the joy of discovery, and the power of knowledge. After ten rewarding years, I made the decision to leave the classroom and begin new relationships with children: my own.
The years I spent at home with my children were even more rewarding—if not slightly more exhausting—than my classroom years. It was then, sitting on the other side of the table, I grew to understand firsthand just how powerful the relationship between teacher and student (and family) could be. I have no doubt that by having expert and talented early educators, my children were set on a path of lifelong learning. As they grew, so did my eagerness to return to my professional …show more content…
I teach a range of undergraduate education and developmental psychology courses to practicing and pre-practicing early childhood educators, matriculated into various degree and certificate programs. By providing these educators a model of mentorship with strong philosophical and pedagogical foundations, I have been able to witness once again the power and promise that quality early childhood educational experiences hold. Unfortunately, our current teacher credentialing system falls far short of this model. As I look forward to the next phase in my career, I am eager to delve into exploring bringing such a model to scale, and I believe that a degree in higher education administration will leave me best positioned to do
My classroom program was based on the belief that children learn best when they actively participate in the construction of their knowledge. I take great pride that my students grew to know the value of collaboration, the joy of discovery, and the power of knowledge. After ten rewarding years, I made the decision to leave the classroom and begin new relationships with children: my own.
The years I spent at home with my children were even more rewarding—if not slightly more exhausting—than my classroom years. It was then, sitting on the other side of the table, I grew to understand firsthand just how powerful the relationship between teacher and student (and family) could be. I have no doubt that by having expert and talented early educators, my children were set on a path of lifelong learning. As they grew, so did my eagerness to return to my professional …show more content…
I teach a range of undergraduate education and developmental psychology courses to practicing and pre-practicing early childhood educators, matriculated into various degree and certificate programs. By providing these educators a model of mentorship with strong philosophical and pedagogical foundations, I have been able to witness once again the power and promise that quality early childhood educational experiences hold. Unfortunately, our current teacher credentialing system falls far short of this model. As I look forward to the next phase in my career, I am eager to delve into exploring bringing such a model to scale, and I believe that a degree in higher education administration will leave me best positioned to do