In the summer of 2019 I embarked on the next logical step for a life-long learner and educator – completing a master’s degree in education. I had already logged sixteen years of teaching and coaching at the high school level by that point in time. However, a new fire had been ignited that drove me to expand the depth and breadth of my understanding of teaching and learning.

Early in my career I was confident in my abilities – at times overly confident – and I more or less mechanically constructed lessons and assessments based on ideas passed down to me by my predecessors. These things seemed to work just fine; but, as I grew as an educator, so did the questions I asked regarding effective evidence-based pedagogies and methodologies. My express goal when I entered the Master of Arts in Education (MAED) offered by Michigan State University was to become a more effective classroom teacher.

In many ways this ambition has been realized. I have been able to introduce new and highly effective strategies into my classroom because of my educational journey. Better yet, there are positive outcomes still to be realized due to the things I have learned and the experiences I have had in the MAED program. These opportunities to learn and grow as an educator have helped me on my never-ending journey to becoming a better educator. Furthermore, these experiences have opened my eyes to new areas for growth and exploration in my career.

More Effective Classroom Teacher

The MAED program has afforded the opportunity to push past the boundaries I had unknowingly established for myself as a classroom teacher. I explored the depths of the profession beyond what I could garner from the occasional professional development session or in casual conversations in the teachers lounge. One example of something I have adopted is the use of Microsoft OneNote as an electronic student portfolio. I studied various educational technologies, learning strategies, and pedagogical approaches; and throughout these studies I designed a student portfolio that is easily accessible on most devices, allows for collaboration, and provides students with multiple avenues to explore learning resources and submit work. This portfolio has streamed and improved many of the processes important to a high functioning learning environment and is just one example of how I have improved as an educator.

New “Fires”

I have gained a deeper understanding of education over the past two years; and as a result, new fires have been ignited and areas of interest illuminated. Moving forward I am adamant I will continue exploring and implementing design thinking, SAMR, TPACK, universal design for learning (UDL), and conducting participatory research among many other things in my classroom. I am also confident that as I step into the next phase of my career that I can effectively lead the curricular and pedagogical changes my school should make to become a more inclusive and student-centered learning environment. This next stage of my professional journey involves becoming a dean or STEM director at an innovative secondary school.