WPI Education

Relevant Content Coursework

Though my academic specialties lie in the Life Sciences, I have a strong background in all areas of math and science. As the middle school science curriculum covers a broad array of topics in the sciences, this provides me with an in-depth knowledge of all the content I need to teach. Some of my relevant content coursework at both the college and AP high school level includes:

  • Principles of Ecology

  • Cell Biology

  • Human Anatomy and Physiology

  • Organic Chemistry

  • Biochemistry

  • Calculus 1 - 4

  • Statistics for Life Sciences

  • AP Physics 1 + 2

Pedagogy Coursework

Through the WPI Teacher Preparation Program, I have been able to utilize my strong STEM background as an asset in my pedagogical coursework. The WPI Teacher Preparation Program places a heavy emphasis on understanding the social, emotional, and cultural needs of students and gaining hands-on practice with teaching, more so than on learning rote styles of teaching. My required coursework included two psychology courses (Psychology of Education and School Psychology) before taking any courses on teaching methods. These two courses provided me with a keen insight into the various factors which can prevent students from properly accessing education.

Psychology of Education

Psychology of Education focused largely on student emotional and cognitive development and how, if students' physical and emotional needs are not met in their lives outside of school, they may not be able to succeed in a rigid academic setting. This course encouraged me to think deeper about the difficulties that students bring with them into the classroom and see their actions as responses to their own independent lives, not a reflection on their academic abilities. [9]

School Psychology

School Psychology, on the other hand, focused instead on the broader institutional issues which can prevent students belonging to minority or traditionally persecuted groups from receiving the same education as those with historical privilege. This course required intense examination of personal bias and discussion about race, ethnicity, gender, and religion in our society and schools. Additionally, this course introduced the concept of social-emotional learning and its importance in supporting students as human beings. [2]

Teaching Methods in Math + Science

Teaching Methods built upon the psychology foundation of the previous two courses to introduce the concepts of meeting diverse needs and culturally-responsive teaching. Through practicing developing lesson objectives, thoroughly planning example lessons, and delivering these lessons to other teacher candidates, I gained a practical understanding of these teaching methods.

Sheltered English Immersion

During the first half of my student teaching, I also completed a Sheltered English Immersion course. This course taught me a number of strategies to engage and support ELLs in the classroom through practice and mock lesson delivery. I utilized these techniques extensively in working towards my professional development goal of supporting my ELL students. Upon successfully completing this course, I earned my SEI endorsement. [16]

Project-Based Learning

In accordance with the school motto, "Theory and Practice," WPI's project-based learning model ensures a well-rounded understanding of content in concept and application. Project-based learning gives one the unique opportunity to learn through doing, rather than learn before doing. This emphasis on practical learning in all classes meant that I was well prepared for this practicum experience, and was able to hit the ground running upon starting my student teaching. [25]

When I began my student teaching, remote learning was still uncharted territory for most teachers. There was no known correct way to teach online, and many traditional teaching methods for the classroom simply did not work in an online setting. My mentor teacher and I soon found that the best use of my strengths and the most effective way I could learn in this situation was for us to adopt a co-teaching strategy, instead of having me observe for weeks at a time. Through collaboration and creative problem-solving, my mentor teacher and I were able to develop a stronger understanding of which techniques can work well for students in the online environment. I was able to contribute to lesson planning from day one before taking charge of half of the classes on only the second week of school.

This experience allowed me to learn how to be a teacher in the most effective way possible: becoming a teacher. By embracing the responsibilities and challenges of the role, I learned what it means to be a teacher and how to reach students in one of the most historically challenging years for education. Without my comfort in practical learning gained through WPI, I would have felt helpless and overwhelmed in such a situation, and would likely not have been able to adopt the growth mindset necessary to become a teacher.