Annotated Transcript
This page is dedicated to a detailed description of each of the ten courses I took during my graduate studies at Michigan State University. Courses are listed chronologically, beginning with my first semester in the program. This annotated transcript also explores the ways in which each of these courses shaped my current teaching practices and educational philosophy. To better understand the work that I completed in these courses, please click on the links to explore the corresponding work, much of which can be found in my graduate work portfolio.
Teaching and Learning, K-12 Social Studies (TE 865)
Taught by Tamara Shattuck
This course expanded my appreciation for the history of social studies instruction, the ways in which the standards movement has threatened the place of social studies within the curriculum, and the benefits of social studies instruction for students. Ultimately, this course was my first exposure to the concept of educating students for social justice. I learned about the the skills necessary to global citizenship, and I brought my understandings into focus through a final project that examined the use of historical fiction and primary source documents to develop student's understanding of historical time periods and empathy for the individuals who lived in those periods.
Teaching School Subject Matter with Technology (TE 831)
Taught by Mark McCarthy
In many ways the most daunting course that I encountered during my time at Michigan State, this class focused on the use of technology in the classroom. The course examined the use of technology to enhance the delivery of content, assess student learning, improve classroom communication, and provide students with a wider audience for their work. By the end of the course, I had expanded my repertoire of technological tools for teaching and gained a greater appreciation for the ways in which technology can be used to improve student learning. However, most importantly, I realized that the primary charge of educators, particularly at the secondary level, is to teach students to use technology responsibly.
Writing Assessment and Instruction (TE 848)
Taught by Mark McCarthy
As a writer and English teacher, this course was central to my development. The course focused on ways to help students learn to become stronger writers and explored ways to effectively assess student writing. The course was unique in that it invited students to apply the course content not only to their classrooms, but to their own writing practices. Given the chance to explore my own creative writing, I was able understand the student perspective as I received various types of feedback on my own work through a number of different assessment models. My final project documented my investigation of various assessment methods while working with student writers in my own classroom.
Awards and Classics of Children's Literature (TE 836)
Taught by Dr. Django Paris
I began this class apprehensive about the whether a course in children's literature would be applicable to my work in secondary education, but also excited to explore a topic near and dear to my heart. Remarkably, the course became central to furthering my understanding of the importance of using my classroom as an opportunity to educate for social justice. I had the opportunity to read and reflect on a number of texts, and examine the ways in which they could impact students. One of the most important things I took away from this course was the idea that simply choosing a good work of literature to use in the classroom is not enough. It is incumbent upon educators to choose texts that push their students to grow and develop as individuals as well as learners. Additionally, the course allowed students to focus on an individual area of inquiry within children's literature. I chose to focus on LGBTQ literature and created two websites of which I am particularly proud. The first was a general overview of LGBTQ literature, while the second was a site focused on three particular LGBTQ texts, including The Color Purple, a text I use in my own classroom. The link below leads to the second of these sites.
Fall 2015
Spring 2016
Summer 2016
Curriculum in Its Social Context (TE 818)
Taught by Amanda Frasier
A class that explored the foundations of curriculum in all subject areas, this was another course that further developed my understanding of the ways in which my decisions as a classroom teacher could impact my students development as global citizens with a capacity for critical thinking and empathy. One of the most important aspects of the class was its requirement that we consider our philosophy of education. The thinking, reading and writing that went into the creation of my own philosophy of education was a critical step in refining my position on what it means to be a teacher and what the nature of education is and should be.
Concepts of Educational Inquiry (ED 800)
Taught by Dr. Steven Weiland
A foundational education course, this class examined six different types of educational inquiry and connected each of the six to classroom instruction and curricular development. As a lifelong reader of biographies, I enjoyed the opportunity to explore biographical inquiry in particular and wrote my final paper on the potentials and limitations of using biography as a basis for educational inquiry. This paper is showcased in my graduate portfolio as an example of my work with inquiry. However, I think that the aspect of the course that most resonated with me was reading Howard Gardner's Truth, Beauty and Goodness Reframed. The book provided a compelling argument for the necessity of educating children in morality and ethics, strengthening my own commitment to use my classroom to promote social justice.
Fall 2016
Methods and Materials for Teaching Children's and Adolescent Literature (TE 849)
Taught by Dr. Laura Apol
This class centered on selecting and teaching literature to students of different ages. A central focus of the course was moving beyond the selection of texts that are easily relatable for students in an effort to help them learn to develop empathy and understanding for marginalized populations and those who differ from themselves. One of the central tenets of the class was the understanding that the way in which a teacher positions a text in the curriculum is equally important as the initial selection of what will be read. I wrote a number of papers for this class that highlighted my growing understanding of the ways in which literature can be used to teach students about the world around them, while also developing their ability to empathize with others. This course was transformative in helping me connect my goals to promote social justice to the discipline in which I teach.
Creativity in Teaching and Learning (CEP 818)
Taught by Carmen Richardson
This course was unlike any other that I have ever taken. The course examined the cognitive tools related to creative thought and required participants to engage in their own creative journey. My own journey was documented in a blog that tracked my attempts at employing the various cognitive tools. As well, the course explored the ways in which educators can help students develop their own creativity. The work in this class built upon the work I had done related to Mishra's TPACK theory in my Teaching School Subject Matter with Technology class. Most importantly, the course taught me that creativity is not simply a way to make content more engaging, it is a way for students to demonstrate mastery of a concept by using it to create something new and to develop the capacity for innovative thought that is a key 21st century skill.
Spring 2017
Secondary Reading Assessment and Instruction (TE 843)
Taught by Julene Wilson
Building on my earlier work connected to literacy at Michigan State, this course focuses on the current policies and understandings regarding adolescent literacy. The class examines the ways in which educators can build upon students' reading and writing lives outside of the classroom in order to differentiate instruction to better meet student needs. One of the most important benefits of this course was the way in which it encouraged me to engage in inquiry-based teaching practices. The lessons I developed for my classroom as a result of this course were founded on my students' literacy needs as established through surveys and assessments.
Capstone Seminar (ED 870)
Taught by Dr. Matt Koehler, Spencer Greenhalgh, and Aric Gaunt
A culmination of all that I have learned in my time at Michigan State University, this course provided a unique opportunity to reflect on what I have learned during my graduate work and to synthesize the myriad lessons learned into a single guiding philosophy of the nature of education and my place within that honored vocation. The portfolio of my work created for this course is essentially an interactive museum displaying the artifacts of my course of study at Michigan State within the context of my newly refined educational philosophy.