Year Two

Probationer’s Self-Evaluation: Year 2 (Spring 2020- Spring 2021) March 17, 2021

I. Evaluation of Goals for Nancy Nelson Spring 2020-Spring 2021

Goals for Year 2:

1. Continue to hone my skills in teaching GED/HS+, primarily in areas such as math and science

2. Become more versed in the current various GED curricula and research new curricula

3. Complete the HS+ review and re-implementation for a Fall Quarter 2020 rollout

4. Teach in other units within the facility

5. Pursue team-teaching and peer observation opportunities

6. In addition to GED/HS+, teach English pre-college/college courses

7. Pursue the implementation of a Creative Writing club at MCC

How have I met each of these goals?

1. Continue to hone my skills in teaching GED/HS+, primarily in areas such as math and science

a. This year has been great with respect to improving on this goal. I feel like I know so much more of what I am doing from a practical standpoint. I am nearly fluid in the GED curriculum and the new and improved HS+ curriculum is working so much better. I have many students taking the HS+ path, and they are really enjoying the variety of assignments, the flexibility of ways to demonstrate competence, and the relevance of the assignments to their world around them. While I am still (and always will be) looking for new curriculum, improving on current curriculum, and finding new ways to engage students with the curriculum, I am happy that I have a good foundational tool kit.

b. I have ventured into teaching content areas with which I am less comfortable (social studies, math, and science). While these have been baby steps, I am excited to expand my repertoire. For a teaching observation conducted by my dean, I presented an extensive math lesson on Mean, Median, Mode, & Range. Understanding these concepts and how to calculate them are required on the Math GED exam. As math is always easier for my students to understand when applied to real life, I tied this this lesson to the Emotional Bank Account. Students were given scenarios to evaluate using the Emotional Bank Account criteria. They worked in pairs to evaluate each scenario and assign their perceived appropriate debits and/or credits for each situation. Once all the data was determined, we calculated the Mean, Median, Mode, & Range for each scenario. The results of the combined data let the students know which areas of the Emotional Bank Account were most important to our classroom. Our theme this quarter is perspective and understanding the perspective of the class as a whole leads to a more harmonious and productive environment.

2. Become more versed in the current various GED curricula and research new curricula

a. I inherited several curricula, and I have spent a great deal of time this past year evaluating current materials and talking with students and classroom assistants to determine which curriculum aligns best with the GED tests. I have homed in on a particular curriculum, and the GED pass rate of my students has greatly increased.

b. I have researched new curricula and have found additional materials that students appreciate, understand, and enjoy. These include Cracking the GED and the Everything You need to Know to Ace Math, English, etc. series. Students find these materials very accessible.

3. Complete the HS+ review and re-implementation for a Fall Quarter 2020 rollout

a. As a team effort with other HS+ faculty, this endeavor has been a great success. One of the advantages of remote instruction due to COVID during Spring Quarter 2020 was the time available to revise this curriculum. I worked on three separate Canvas courses turning on-line courses into a format that works in the prison. Videos needed to be manipulated and online documents needed to be changed into pdf documents. In addition to the mechanics of the courses, content needed to be reviewed with a fine-tooth comb to ensure it was relevant and appropriate for a corrections setting.

b. I am happy to say that since the start of Fall Quarter 2020, I have had numerous students successfully compete these courses, and I have had many earn their high school diplomas via this program. Feedback from students has been very positive in that they liked the project-based learning versus the test-based learning.

c. I have also found this curriculum more hands-on with students and fun to teach.

4. Teach in other units within the facility

a. Fall Quarter 2020 I taught Pre-College English 99 at the Washington State Reformatory (WSR) unit. This unit is the “original” prison and houses individuals with a higher crime level than my current Twin Rivers Unit (TRU). I must admit that I was a little nervous to teach in this unit, but I am happy to say that the experience was positive.

b. Teaching this course for the first time fully face-to-face was great. The students really resonated with the course text (a past “Edmonds Reads” book, American Like Me by America Ferrara), and the class discussions and writing were rich, enlightening, and meaningful to the students and to me.

5. Pursue team-teaching and peer observation opportunities

a. As with all aspects of Edmonds College, COVID has greatly impacted teaching in Corrections. Unfortunately, I was not able to meet this goal due to social -distancing and the great flux of teaching across all of Monroe Correctional Complex (MCC). I hope to pursue this goal in the future.

6. In addition to GED/HS+, teach English pre-college/college courses

a. I am happy to have taught Pre-College English 99 Spring Quarter 2020 (remotely), Fall Quarter 2020, and Winter Quarter 2021 (face-to-face). This is a fun and rewarding course to teach. The students greatly benefit from all aspects of the course: writing skills, close reading, self-identification and reflection, classroom discussions, and the realization and understanding of other perspectives. Feedback from students on this course has been very positive.

7. Pursue the implementation of a Creative Writing club at MCC

a. This has yet to happen, but is still a dream of mine. Adding programs takes much time and effort in that I am a guest in the house of Department of Corrections (DOC). I take this position seriously and greatly appreciate the role of DOC in ensuring the safety of everyone.

College Service

· Member of Faculty Senate

· Represented Corrections Education at full faculty Senate meeting and President’s Leadership Team

· Arranged for the first Edmonds faculty and staff visit to MCC

· Member of new Student Voices Group

Scholarship

· Graduated from Department of Corrections CORE Training (intensive six-week training program for all Corrections employees). Includes academic, tactical, physical, and practical skills associated with working in a Corrections environment with direct and constant contact with inmates.

· Successfully completed Best Practices for Teaching Online Canvas course

· Participated in Teachin’ It Canvas course

· Participated in Building Community Day

· ctclink training

II. Reflection of Accomplishments Over My Second Year as a Full-time Faculty Member

Teaching is still hard. Teaching in a corrections setting is still extremely hard, especially in the time of COVID. But, again, it is a great kind of hard. I have learned so much this year, more around the environment in which I teach and the population I teach. Teaching has its unique challenges for all levels, areas, populations. But to teach in a corrections setting is one that is difficult to describe to one who has not taught in this setting or even visited the environment. It all starts with the awareness of heading into such a foreign and imposing place. Next comes the security screening, personal keys are locked up, bag check, pat down, and you are passed through a myriad of locked doors before you reach the sally port.* Once through the sally port, you are officially in the prison and begin a three-minute walk down the breezeway with inmate living units around you. Inmates, officers, and other staff are on the breezeway. Maneuvering can be tricky as mingling with male incarcerated individuals is not allowed. Once in the education building comes opening the building with another (officer or staff). For safety reasons, opening a building requires two people; one is not allowed to enter a closed building alone. Then comes running the “callout” for each class. This is the daily list of students who are allowed to come to class. Inmates do not get to move about the facility at their leisure. Callouts show that an inmate is allowed to leave their living unit and indicates where they are allowed to go. Many factors dictate the callout (discipline, health issues, other programming that may supersede education, etc.), so an instructor in Corrections needs to be prepared for required absences and great flexibility with respect to student movement. Once students arrive, roll is taken by both the assigned officer and the instructor. Before class can begin, the instructor and officer need to reconcile their attendance sheets. If a student is on the callout and they have not come to class, the must be found. A 7:30 AM class results in a 7:45-7:50 start time as students are not allowed to leave their living units until 7:30 and the accomplishment of the above tasks takes time.

A three-hour class block (Corrections Education classes run in three-hour blocks) consists of a classroom of students who are all working on different curriculum. I do engage in whole class instruction daily, but I do so much differently than I did when I taught in a traditional college setting. Because students are all working on something different, I allow them to quietly do their work while I am teaching. An instructor in this setting needs to be flexible, greatly skilled at multi-tasking, and not at all easily distracted.

I think this is a good time to really attempt to describe the population in a Corrections Education classroom. My students in Basic Skills (GED and High School+) are there because they are required to be, so there is an immediate pushback and hostility with many of these students. My students in English 99 are there by choice. That said, most of my students in all the courses I teach do not understand the protocol or nuances of a classroom setting. They blurt out. They interrupt. They get angry. They will not stop talking. They are rude to classmates (though limited, there are opposing gang members in class together) and the instructor. They use foul language. They emotionally break down. They refuse to do what is asked of them. They argue with their classmates and the instructor. The list goes on. Not all of them do these things all the time, but at least one of these instances occurs at least once each class meeting. Many of them have not been to school beyond elementary school, and some of them have never attended school at all. They do not know what is acceptable or appropriate because no one has taught them. Add to that mental health, learning disabilities, impaired cognitive abilities, etc., and the lack of understanding the protocols most of us take for granted are exacerbated. A lot of instruction time is spent not only on dealing with these issues but also in teaching moments around them. In addition to my students working on different curriculum, most of them have a learning disability, mental health issue, cognitive ability impairment, etc. which adds a deeper barrier to learning.

I know this is long, but I feel it is especially important to do my best to describe the environment in which I teach. Because it is unique, my self-evaluation is incumbent upon a clear understanding of my classroom. I am proud of all that I have learned and accomplished this year. While I still have much to learn and am always seeking to improve my craft, I think this past year, especially, has been one of great growth. My first year was a huge logistical learning event, and this second year has been a cultural learning event. Feeling fluid in knowing where the bathroom and supplies are has afforded me the opportunity to learn the culture of my students, officers, staff, and the Corrections setting. As with any established environment, there is a specific and unique culture that is long embedded. An outsider entering an established culture carries risk. I would be foolish to state that I have everything figured out, but I feel stronger and better equipped to handle the above situations as they occur. My footing is steadier and my shoulders broader. I feel much more confidant in my abilities, and this brings a greater sense of joy and ease to my teaching day, which, I hope, imparts itself upon my students.