Maressa C. Alsher
Making Learning Meaningful
One of the things I love so much about being an educator is the opportunity to engage students in meaningful learning opportunities. Each day, I am able to cultivate community within the classroom and develop authentic learning experiences that encourage growth. As a result, I am constantly learning from my students, reflecting on my teaching practices, and through collaboration with colleagues. All of these experiences have allowed me to develop into a flexible and meaningful educator.
I enrolled in Michigan State University’s Master of Arts in Education (MAED) program to gain knowledge and fine tune skills to continue to support student growth and achievement. Having never taken an online course before starting this program, I was excited about the flexibility that an online platform provides and the opportunity to learn more about technology utilization in an academic setting.
Throughout my coursework, I have had the opportunity to engage in thoughtful dialogue and acquire the tools needed to take my knowledge and leadership skills to the next level. I can confidently say that my work within the MAED program has allowed me to develop into a stronger educator and lifelong learner. This program has enabled me to become well equipped with the knowledge and resources I need to continue to grow as an effective educator within my school community.
Making all Students ‘Math People’
One of the first courses I took at Michigan State University was TE855: Teaching Children Mathematics, taught by Mr. Luke Tunstall. This course was memorable for me because it helped to refine strategies that I have used to support math learners within the classroom. It has also allowed me to learn more about the origins of mathematics in education. This has enabled me to understand how the field has changed over time and what I need to do as an educator to foster a love for mathematics in the classroom.
Mathematics is so essential to students in their development of analytical and problem-solving skills. All students are mathematicians, and I am passionate about helping students build up their mathematical confidence through rich and meaningful mathematical tasks.
As an educator, I have constantly been tasked with shifting the mindset of students and their feelings about mathematics. So many children and adults lack confidence and have anxiety that is associated with their experiences in the math classroom.
TE855 provided me with resources to support debunking the myth that there are “math people.” A teacher, named Annie Perkins, had this issue in her classroom and engaged her students in launching a blog called “The Mathematicians Project: Mathematicians Are Not Just White Dudes.” Here, Ms. Perkins and her high school students posted information about mathematicians from around the world to celebrate the diversity that exists within the field.
I used this tool with my middle school students. In doing so, they were able to see that mathematicians go beyond the stereotype. This also helped me to develop a culture of error and normalize mistakes as a good thing. This made academic risks something to be celebrated in the classroom.
4th grade students working together during practice long division using the standard algorithm. This is just one strategy taught during our unit on division.
Another project that I created while in TE855 focused on developing a unit of study to engage students in mathematics through a creative and rigorous task. A mathematics journal, Teaching Students Mathematics, publishes a column each month titled “Math by the month.” I created my own “math by the month” feature that provided teachers and parents with weekly resources that they could use to celebrate national nutrition month.
This “brain breakfast” offered activities that span grades K-6 and utilized data from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) website, providing scenarios that were applicable to real-life. Students were able to practice grade-specific math skills with real interesting facts about food and nutrition. This meaningful activity really opened my eyes to the power of creativity to fuel engagement, and I have been developing fun math stations for my students ever since.
Tools in Technology
TE 831: Teaching School Subject Matter with Technology, taught by Dr. Douglas Hartman, is another course that has positively impacted my development. This course, aimed at providing teachers with opportunities to try out and share technology with peers, opened my eyes to the possibilities of technology integration within the classroom. This course allowed me to not only learn and utilize technology as a learning tool, but also to support management, showcase student work, and develop an online community with students and families.
An ongoing assignment that supported this growth was one where classmates presented different “tech tools” and provided peers with an overview of the technology and application of it in the classroom. Although the concept was simple, it provided me with an opportunity to learn how like-minded educators (from around the country) were utilizing different programs to support students.
I was teaching middle school mathematics at the time, and engaging students with new learning experiences through technology was a way to take my instruction to the next level. I was often busy with grading papers and planning lessons, so this assignment allowed me to quickly learn about new forms of technology that I could try with my students.
I was introduced to a program called Formative as a way to assess students after a lesson. Students were able to demonstrate their understanding of a skill using the program, and I was able to swiftly gather data to reteach and refine my teaching practices. I immediately knew next steps to take with each student and was able to tailor my instruction to fit the needs of all. Not only did one simple program allow me to use my time more efficiently, but it also let my students gain technological competencies that are going to drive the next generation’s work force.
4th grade students using another program, Kahoot!, to practice reading skills before an end of unit assessment.
Early Intervention Matters
Another course that was meaningful in my development while completing my MAED program was TE 846: Accommodating Differences in Literacy Learners. Dr. Laura Tortorelli’s course was not only well organized, but the activities were so meaningful and applicable to my classroom.
I had been teaching middle school mathematics for many years before taking this course, and I had just begun transitioning back into an elementary self-contained classroom. This course supported my growth with effective literacy instruction. One component of the course that is frequently overlooked but often dictates success of the course is the required text. The book Dr. Totorelli chose, Best Practices in Literacy Instruction, was not only digestible, but it also had research-based practices that could be implemented into the classroom immediately.
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Image provided by Governor's Early Literacy Foundation
Throughout the course, I was able to use the readings and conversations with colleagues to conduct a literacy case study with a struggling student. The literacy case study spanned across the semester. Each week, a new task was provided that supported a different component of the study and intervention cycle with the student.
We began by learning about a variety of diagnostic assessments and appropriate usage based on what you observe a student doing. We then chose what assessments we wanted to use and analyzed the results to draw conclusions about what the next steps were. I developed a series of idealized lesson plans to target fluency with this student. After the lessons were completed, I re-assessed the student to see what strategies worked to improve student fluency. I then planned next steps and chose new materials that would help to accomplish these goals.
This class helped me consistently use this cycle within my classroom. Now I have the tools and structures in place to help students who need specialized instruction.
Week after week, I learned what quality literacy intervention looked like and immediately applied these ideas to the classroom. After thoughtful planning, I was able to apply research-based ideas that immediately impacted student success.
Fostering Relationships With Students
In Fall 2019, I took another course with Dr. Evelyn Oka that impacted my professional growth called CEP 802: Developing Positive Attitudes toward Learning. Dr. Oka’s course, rooted in research-based practices, tasked educators with thinking thoughtfully about student behavior and their motivation to learn. This course also opened my eyes to the power of relationships with students. In order to effectively learn, students must have a positive attitude towards learning and feel connected to their teacher and school community.
Each week, we examined different aspects of motivation and applied ideas to a fictional case study. After applying the ideas to a fictional case, we met with peers and discussed findings. These bi-weekly Zoom calls not only fostered collaboration, but also helped build relationships that are usually challenging with online instruction.
After we had a firm grasp on determining how to pinpoint a student’s specific behavior that we wanted to improve, we developed a design project that utilized a variety of strategies to reach a goal with that student.
In order to effectively learn, students must have a positive attitude towards learning and feel connected to their teacher and school community.
The student in my classroom that I chose to focus on stated that he does not know how to complete tasks that are complex and require extensive reading or writing. Oftentimes, he would get frustrated when he faced these activities. I chose to target guided reading as a time where I would work on these skills with him.
To start, I gathered data by giving the student a survey and writing anecdotal notes over a week’s time. I focused my note taking during the guided reading block so I could look for trends in behavior and my responses. Next, I developed a motivational strategy to support this student’s success.
We began daily morning check-ins, where we previewed text and began choosing stories together to engage his interests. We also previewed the lesson, and I told him when he would participate. This helped the student build confidence so he could better prepare for the small group lesson. The relationship we were able to build fostered trust to help him take academic risks to learn new ideas.
Why It All Matters
Education is ever-changing. Each year, teachers are tasked with providing an enriched learning experience to a unique group of children. These learning experiences go beyond a set of academic standards to include social-emotional skills, dynamic problem solving, and a love and curiosity of learning. All of these experiences support who they will be in the future. This is no easy feat. I show up every day, striving to be the best version of myself. I put everything into cultivating positive relationships so each child has a strong classroom community to grow in.
Throughout my time in the MAED program, I acquired knowledge and many of the skills that an educator needs to support student growth. My mathematics courses, like TE855, challenged me to break through stereotypes with my students and build a strong culture of mathematics in the classroom. The dialogue and readings supported me with the tools I needed to foster a culture of error and celebrate mistakes as a good thing.
The utilization of technology throughout my coursework has enabled me to develop a well-rounded skill set of programs that I can seamlessly integrate to support students. Not only can technology help with learning outcomes, it is also a way to highlight student work and communicate with families.
Providing targeted intervention for both academics and behavior support the development of the whole child. As an educator, it is my job and passion to make sure that I have the tools and knowledge to provide all learners with the instruction they need to succeed.
Courses like TE 846 and CEP 802 supported me to develop effective lesson plans that use student data to guide instruction. My passion, paired the knowledge and skills I have learned while attending Michigan State University, will continue to inspire me to always learn and innovate within the classroom and beyond. I am looking forward to what the future holds for my professional endeavors as education continues to adapt to teach our future leaders.
4th grade students participating in a STEM challenge to foster community, team work, and creativity.