Professional development is essential to becoming a great educator. My personal educational philosophy includes that teachers are informed in research-based best practices, especially for young adolescents. In November 2022,  I presented research that I had been conducting independently in a concurrent session at the national AMLE conference.

The question that guided my research was: How can educators utilize a diverse collection of literature that creates an equitable learning environment that fights biases and white privilege? During my research, I investigated different strategies that would celebrate diversity while also being practical to implement in the classroom on a daily basis. The presentation ended with a facilitated discussion of the attendees that included their own recommendations and takeaways from the session. 

I found this independent research to be incredibly beneficial both professionally and personally. I developed my research and communication skills, while also pushing myself out of my comfort zone. In addition, I gained a stronger sense of the type of classroom environment and attitude I wanted to set for my own students.