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[MUSIC]
Where are you from? Well, this is an easy question for most.
But for me as a child growing up in multiple states and overseas
and for the military students I teach, this is far from easy.
I recently, I asked one of my new students where he was from.
And like a typical military child, he hesitated and then said,
“I was born in California, moved to Germany, Bahrain, Illinois
North Carolina and now Italy.” I then asked, “So where are you really from?”
There was a pause and then the whole class answered
as if light bulbs went off in their heads… “America.”
The Department of Defense Education Activity – DoDEA –
is a reflection of our entire nation.
If you were to ask who am I, I represent thousands of teachers
who devote their lives daily to teaching the children of America’s
heroes-the children of our United States Armed Forces.
DoDEA spans the globe in 12 countries, 7 states, and 2 American territories.
Many states, countries, social-economic backgrounds and cultures walk
through our school doors. Every day, I teach the “nation” in my classroom.
My experiences from teaching in DoDEA schools overseas to
teaching in stateside public schools, across many disciplines and grade levels,
have led me to witness and understand the importance of connections.
It is our student, content, and community connections that will
open doors of learning and determine success in our global society.
First and most important are the connections we make with our students—
the personal connections. I am standing here today,
because my first grade teacher, Mrs. Ure, took the time to notice the shy,
timid girl sitting in the corner of the room. She invested her energy in knowing me,
helping me build confidence, and ultimately influencing my decision to become a teacher.
As educators, we need to do all in our power to know each and every
individual in our classroom. We need not only know their academic level,
but what makes them tick. What are their interests, their goals and their fears?
I learned early on in my teaching career, that personal connections
were not just a best practice, but an absolute necessity.
Years ago, my husband and I accepted teaching jobs at one of the smallest
Title I schools in the United States. Our Navajo Native American students
traveled to school by ferry from across Lake Powell, Utah.
I taught Kindergarten, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd grade in one room with 25 students.
I thought I was ready to take on the challenge of teaching four grade levels--
including music, PE, art, and even serving lunch.
I soon realized, though, that this would not be my challenge.
The first day of school, I asked my students to replicate their
home using a brown-paper bag. I had a sample of a traditional home
with a triangular roof, square base, and a nice rectangular door.
After I modeled and explained the project, immediately hands sprung in the air.
One child said, “My home doesn’t look like that.”
Another child said, “Can I turn it on its side and make a trailer?”
And then a third child quietly responded, “I don’t have a home.”
My job as their teacher is to not only know their performance level,
but to know their background, their culture, their idiosyncrasies—
to know the whole child. Only then, can I begin to reach children at all their levels.
Currently, Vicenza, Italy is the home of the 173rd Airborne Brigade—
one of the most famous Army regiments throughout history.
85% of our soldiers currently deploy to Afghanistan.
Even the pride and honor of being part of the 173rd cannot change the fears,
emotions and challenges military students face on a daily basis -
making personal connections priceless.
Here are their voices:
“My dad has missed four of my last five birthdays.”
“My mom puts me in charge of my brothers and sisters.”
“Do you know we have been at war 10 of my 12 years of life?”
“My mom is not the same now that she is back from war.
Reintegration is hard, too.”
“I make friends, just to leave them. This is the 6th school I have attended.”
“My dad deploys for the 5th time this summer.”
I often times stop and am in absolute “awe” at the students I am privileged to teach each day.
The sacrifices their parents make and they make for our country are immeasurable.
My job as their teacher is to provide an environment that fosters student voice,
allows for open discussions, and creates a home away from home.
As a mother of four daughters my eyes tear and my heart swells that
1st day of school as they walk through those school doors.
At that moment… facts, statistics, and college readiness do not even cross
my mind. All I care about is that their teacher will notice and nurture my little girls.
I welcome my students at the door. I look for smiles that aren’t as bright.
I look for eyes that seem duller than usual.
I watch for kids who are distracted, and I make sure everyone has a friend.
Personal connections, regardless of grade level or discipline,
are the key to reaching students.
And students’ confidence soars when they know that a teacher loves,
cares and values them.
Second we need to help students form a personal connection to the content.
This occurs when we, as teachers, bring the content and the student together
and encourage an interaction between the two,
resulting in a memorable moment— a moment that will not be forgotten
tomorrow or next school year.
From the time a child enters kindergarten until they are 18 years old-
parents put their trust and faith in our educational system.
Students will spend approximately 14,000 hours in a classroom by the time they graduate.
We, as teachers, craft what happens in those hours.
teachers are no longer dispensers of information.
Most information can be found within seconds on the internet.
We are orchestrators – “bringing learning alive” in innovative and creative ways.
The average person will spend six seconds on an internet site
before clicking onto something else.
Based on this statistic, as educators we have six seconds to grab
our students and engage them in a meaningful lesson.
So sing, dance, create, debate, “Google” —do all that is necessary
to connect content to our 21st Century digital learners.
Instead of merely reading about a character, have the students
become the character - connecting to senses and emotions.
Recently, my students became passengers on the Titanic.
They drew Titanic names, researched their class and whether or not they survived,
dressed in period clothing, and then walked the length of the Titanic
singing historical songs. Their black and white Titanic photos now flank our hallways, surrounded by written tributes to the character they had become.
We should use technology, dynamic differentiation,
real world scenarios and hands-on experiences.
Teachers create 21st Century thinkers and 21st Century creative problem solvers.
Teachers give students the skills they need for jobs that do not even exist today.
Third, we must help our students form a personal connection to our communities.
While taking 7th and 8th grade students across the
Australian Outback with the People to People Student Ambassador Program,
I realized how expansive communities really are.
Classrooms are no longer bound to four walls.
They span the globe. Our students in DoDEA do not just read about,
they experience cultures, interactions and policies of other countries.
They participate in international school exchange programs,
they take field trips to castles, and in my diverse classroom
we sing Happy Birthday in 6 different languages.
They are exemplars of global connections—really being Ambassadors of America
on a daily basis.
I realize that this experience may not be the same for all children.
Therefore, we need to bring the world to our students.
Whether we do that by literally taking them to Coliseum in Rome,
or we use our interactive 21st Century technology to take a virtual
field trip there—the goal is the same. Create global awareness and relationships.
We all have a role in creating global citizens, able to participate
in our vast and open future. Our students will be competing for jobs
and resources with children from all around the world.
So come into our classrooms, join us in the continuous school
improvement process, advocate for a respect of education,
promote 21st Century teaching and learning, and help foster
global understanding and relationships.
As a member of our college debate team, I walked into the final
round of the Collegiate Lawyers Tournament in Indianapolis,
the judges asked us to introduce ourselves and state our majors.
In all my four years as a college debater, I never met anyone majoring
in anything other than political science and pre-law.
So you can imagine the smiles I received when I said,
“Angela Wilson, elementary education.” After this particular round,
the judges all expressed concern with my choice of major
and asked to speak with me. One said, “Angela, I am sure you will
make a great teacher, but anyone could teach.
Please consider pre-law, you could do so much more than teach."
I come from a family of educators and this statement shocked me.
It also opened my eyes to the misconceptions many people hold about teachers.
"So much more than teach?” Tell me what profession gives more than teaching?
Tell me what profession inspires, motivates, and develops future
doctors, artists, and yes… lawyers? To me there is no more noble
profession than teaching. Ever since I was six years old this is all
I’ve ever wanted to do. Eleven years into the teaching profession
and I still wake up in the middle of the night and jot down new
ideas based off of student’s interests. I am constantly learning,
growing and reflecting, just like my students.
Teaching is not just my job - it is my passion.
So, “Where I am from?” I am proud to say that I was born in Utah,
moved to Tonga, Texas, Hawaii, Illinois, Korea, Turkey, and now Italy.
But where am I really from? I'm from the United States of America.
I represent the Department of Defense Education Activity,
a reflection of our entire nation. No matter where you live,
what grade or discipline you teach -
it is the personal connections you make with students,
the creative connections to content, and community
connections that will open doors to life-long learning,
and prepare American students for their role in a global society.