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Graduate Work Showcase

Research 

Alternative Ways of Developing and Assessing Basic Fact Fluency | October, 2011
  • As an undergraduate student at WMU, I completed a research study for my Lee Honor's College Thesis. This study focused on teaching first grade students new ways to solve basic addition facts. This was my first experience as a teacher researcher and changed how I approach teaching basic mathematics skills and how I assess my students.
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Essays

Projects

The Kindergarten Reader: A study of nonfiction science text comprehension and student interest  | TE 861C, June 2014
  • This study focused on my Kindergarten students' proficiency when reading nonfiction texts and gave insight to the type of books they were reading outside of the classroom. After taking this course, I have a better understanding of how my students can learn science information through reading. Becoming a teacher researcher has made me a much more thoughtful teacher and I have learned to value formative assessment equally as much as summative.
Implementing Science Reform and Teaching for Understanding | TE 861A, May 2015​​
  • In this essay, I describe recent changes in science education, including the Next Generation Science Standards. I also discuss how teachers can alter teaching methods to teach for understanding and use assessment to drive instruction. This assignment opened my mind to different ways of teaching and I have a better understanding of inquiry-based learning.

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Identifying the Functions of Plant Parts: Third Grade Life Science | TE 861A, May 2015
  • In this project, my students used journaling as a way to monitor their learning and as a method of formative assessment. This project increased my skills in assessing my students' understanding of science topics. For the first time, I was able to see how assessments were beneficial to both the students and the teacher when used in a more authentic way.
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Third Graders Create Informational Podcasts: An Effort to Increase Student Motivation in Writing | TE 831, May 2015

  • In this project, I remixed a traditional writing unit to include the creation of podcasts with my third grade students. I learned how to create a podcase during this project as well as gained skills in using Garage Band software.

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Preschool STEM Maker Video | CEP 811, May 2015

  • I created a MakerEd experience for my daycare children. This video shows a lesson in which students utilized fine motor skills, counting and beginning number recognition. This was my first experience using STEM concepts with such young learners and I learned that even three year old children can be inspired by the use of STEM in the classroom.

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From Novice to Expert: A Look at Learning | CEP 810, January 2015
  • In this essay, I define the difference between novice and expert learners, as well as implications for teachers. This assignment helped change my thinking on how students should be grouped when working in center activities. Pairing students heterogenously provides much more opportunity to peer-to-peer learning.
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Reimagining Online Learning | CEP 812, January 2015
  • My colleagues and I discuss the Wicked Problem of Reimagining Online Learning in this paper, and propose personalized learning as a way to address current problems with learning online. As a result of this assignment, I was challenged to think critically about the pros and cons of online learning and reflect on my own experiences from taking online courses. I learned about personalized learning and how personalized learning platforms are transforming the way students learn online.
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I had a simple goal when I entered the Master of Arts in Education program: I wanted to become a better teacher. I wanted to increase my skills as a teacher for myself, but also for my students. As I continued in the degree program, I noticed three types of work influenced my teaching the most. First, acting as a teacher researcher allowed me to study how my students were learning content and to test alternative teaching methods. Next, researching educational theory and pedagogy informed decisions I was making as a teacher. Finally, creating new projects for my students to complete allowed me to test some of what I was learning in the MAED program to improve the quality of my instruction. The following links are a compilation of work I have done during my time as a student in the MAED program at Michigan State University. I also included one research study I conducted as an undergraduate at Western Michigan University. I selected the following assignments because I feel they most accurately reflect how I have grown as a teacher and show my concetration in Math and Science and focus on Educational Technology.

Maker Education Blog and Infographic | CEP 811, May 2015

  • I have used a blog for three of my MAED courses. This post features an infographic I created to highlight the benefits of MakerEd in a preschool setting. Creating infographics has proven to be an essential skill to have and this assignment was a great way to show mastery of this type of educational technology.

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