Full of surprises

I am helping out in Ms. Daniel’s 6^th grade Earth Science class this semester. Ms. Daniel teaches at Woodland Middle School in East Point, GA. I can already tell that my experience at Woodland is going to be full of surprises. This past week I started interacting with the students by helping them with an in-class activity that involved searching for answers on the Internet. The students were given laptops and instructions for how to get to the websites where they could find answers to the questions. I helped out by walking around the room to make sure students weren’t straying from the websites they were allowed to be on and by answering questions they had.

Most of the students I helped only needed assistance in navigating to the correct websites. They may have had a typo in the URL or had missed a phrase. A few needed guidance in finding the answers on the webpages, but for the most part they knew what they were doing. There has been something that has surprised me every time I have observed in Ms. Daniel’s class so far (and I’m sure it will continue to happen). Almost every instance where I helped a student, he or she said “Thank you” to me. There was even one boy who said, “Yes ma’am” after I asked him a question. I was blown away by how polite these students were. I interact with adults on a daily basis who are not as polite as these children are. Even though the students come from disadvantaged backgrounds they still recognize the importance of being polite and respectful when someone who cares about them helps them. I can already say that I care about each and every one of the students that I have been given the privilege to work with.

There is one more surprise I would like to share. Before class started a student named John walked in and upon seeing Ms. Daniel said, “Ms. Daniel! I missed you!” and gave her a hug (she had not been in school the day before). He then looked at me, walked over, and said, “Hello. I don’t think we’ve met. What’s your name?” He then extended his hand in order to shake mine. He said he didn’t recognize me and I told him I would be helping out every Tuesday for the rest of the year and eventually teaching the class about health. He then went to his seat and got ready for class. After the class was over and before he left the room, he turned to me and said, “Have a good day! See you later!” What surprises have you experienced so far?

~Heather

An Invaluable Partnership

For me, the most invaluable part of the Classroom to Community experience has been working with and learning from my Teach for America (TFA) partner. My TFA partner is Nina Hyvarinen, a 7^th grade biology teacher at Bethune Middle School.

The value (and luxury) of having a partner really hit me while Nina and I revised my first lesson plan. Prior to our meeting, I was having a hard time understanding the difference between an objective-driven lesson and an activity-driven lesson and why/how an objective-driven lesson is more effective. Nina helped me by explaining the purpose of each section of the lesson plan in detail and by giving examples from her own experiences writing lessons. She went through my lesson, section-by-section, showing me not just how to re-work it, but why.

I went back to look at my first drafts, which I had written over a month ago, and compared it to the final drafts and was amazed by the differences (it is so embarrassing to look at now!). My final lesson plans are much more condensed in information, but more explicit in directions; anything I will say in class is written in the lesson plan. My original plan for my first lesson had 6 objectives that the students would be able to complete at the end of the lesson and 15 key points of new information that they would learn. Many of these key points were not specifically related to the objectives and thus were not included in the guided practice or independent assessment. I would never have been able to complete my original lesson on time, and there was too much information for students to remember. My final plan had only 3 objectives and 11 key points. These key points were all relevant to the objectives and were repeated 3 times: in the introduction to new material, during guided practice, and during the independent assessment.

After each lesson, Nina and I “debriefed” on what went well and what didn't. She pointed out what my strengths were (presenting information clearly so that all students could understand) and what I still need to work on (giving clear directions and then holding students to it, i.e. wearing my “teacher pants”). I don't think I have ever been so happy or willing to receive constructive criticism.

How have your TFA or Rollins partners helped you to grow?

~ Erica Hazra, Rollins School of Public Health

Lessons Learned. Great Lessons.

I taught my first lesson yesterday morning, and it was such an awesome experience!  I learned so much throughout this process—much of it from what I had not anticipated.  To start from the beginning, I’ll go back to last week when we turned in our lesson plan drafts.  After getting feedback, I started to think about how I could make changes to the lesson plan. 

This is where the learning began for me. 

The suggestions and feedback (although some specific to the content), was more about getting me to think.  What did I want the students to learn? How was I going to assess them? What was I going to do the get there?  Now these were all things we had talked about in C2C a few weeks earlier when Audra, Scot, and Ariela had talked about creating lesson plans—but this was a reality check.  I need to continuously ask myself these questions.

Ah, the power of discussion.  It was through conversations, emails, and phone calls with Michael, as well as, sitting down to talk with fellow C2Cers (shout out to Erin Keyes!) where I could bounce around some ideas.  This is when everything started to come together.  I had made the assumption that as soon as I got feedback on my lesson plan, I knew exactly what I needed to change, and that I’d be told what to do. No, no.  That’s too easy—now where’s the fun in that? Instead, they asked me questions. Questions that I didn’t know how to answer off the top of my head.  So I had to really give myself some time. Time to think. 

Can I just say? Props to teachers! It takes so long to make lessons, and you do this every day J 

Now I find myself the morning of the lesson.  I’m nervous and pumped (blasted some tunes on the drive down)!  Michael has reassured me that the students are excited for me to teach—little did they know that I was sweating bullets!  But honestly, as soon as I got up there and saw all of their faces, the nervousness (not the sweating) went away. It was so much fun, and oh boy, did I have my hands full! I had to field questions from students, keep them engaged, anticipate when their comments may go off track, pace the class, check to make sure that they were learning the concepts, and keep time!  I managed to do some of those more easily than others, but I had some challenges.  There’s so much I can (and want) to work on.

I look forward to debriefing with Michael, and learning more about what I can work on for next time in order to make a better experience for the students.  Self-reflection and feedback are key motivators for me, and this was the perfect opportunity.  Nothing beats experience.  It certainly put to rest any concerns and assumptions I had before I walked in that day.

I’d love to hear from fellow C2Cers and TFA CMs! How did the first lesson go? What worked? What were some of the challenges? How did the students respond?

- Sahar Salek, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University

Fighting Failure with Communication

Many students live in a world where it’s easy to give up on them. Their communities are burdened with so many challenges, that it’s easier to say “Get out!” than it is to tackle a behavior problem and acknowledge underlying social factors. Sometimes, this is rationalized by saying that the student is disrupting classroom learning—that you’re doing it for the benefit of the other students. But what do the other students see? They see you giving up on a classmate. Soon, they think, you might give up on them too. So what’s the point of behaving well?

Observing Ms. Bryson, I’ve seen an alternative teaching style. She constantly reinforces positive models, pointing out individual students and their behaviors. “I see Darius working hard on his class work. I see Kayla raising her hand quietly.” Instead of tearing the students down for their misbehaviors, she tells them, “I want you to tell me what you need.” Communication and resolution. It doesn’t always work. And it never looks easy. But there is something incalculably rewarding about seeing a student learn a life skill. This not only helps students create a positive learning culture, it helps them communicate their needs and their passions. Once they master communication, they have the potential to succeed.

"Education is not a way to escape poverty - It is a way of fighting it." 

 Julius Nyerere, former President of the United Republic of Tanzania

- Gaelle Gourmelon

Have health. Have hope. Have everything.

This past week, we had a fantastic guest speaker in our class—Dr. Veda Johnson from Emory University School of Medicine.  Dr. Johnson gave a great talk on health, education, and the effectiveness and benefits of school based healthcenters (SBHCs).  By definition, SBHCs are comprehensive school based health clinics that provide a variety of medical, preventive, and mental health services.  SBHCs are located in schools and work with the school and community in order to become part of the school’s infrastructure.  SBHCs are critical as they offer students with health services they may not have access to otherwise. 

As a graduate student in Behavioral Sciences and Health Education, I am always interested in the piece about community.  How can individuals make a collective effort to be involved in the health of their community?   When Dr. Johnson was discussing the planning and implementation of the SBHCs she’s been involved with, she emphasized the importance of listening—identifying the community you’re working with, prioritizing efforts based on the community’s needs, and getting the community involved.  She stressed that by listening, SBHCs can build on the strengths of what already exists in communities—there is value in that, she said.  SBHCs aren’t limited to just providing medical services, they also encourage parents to participate in the health of their child as the clinics are housed within the schools. 

During undergrad, I used to volunteer as a dental assistant in the UC-San Diego Student-Run Free Clinic Project, specifically in the dental clinic at Baker Elementary School in south San Diego (which also offered mental and medical care).  The clinic is run by pre-dental students under the supervision of licensed dentists (who volunteer their time and services), and it offers many of the same benefits as SBHCs. This particular clinic is in a permanent mobile right in the center of the school’s blacktop.  Students weren’t the only patients at the clinic, many other family and community members would come to the clinic, as well.  It was such an amazing effort from families within the community, the school, and the university.  

Back then, I didn’t always make the clear and direct link between health and academic success—it’s only been in the years since I’ve been in the public health program, and had opportunities like being involved in C2C, that I’ve learned more about the many social determinants of health and all of the impacts that it can have on children, students, families, and communities. 

Dr. Johnson’s talk emphasized that there are numerous links between health and academic success for students.  But one thing she shared that particularly resonated with me, and I would like to share with others outside of C2C, is that “students learn best when there is hope.”


- Sahar Salek, Behavioral Sciences and Health Education

The Nod, Gateway to the Classroom

"Ms. Bryson, who's she?"

That's all it took. Just one question would let me into the lives of dozens of students. I looked at the curious faces, turning back to see me-- the recent addition to their class. Amy Bryson, a Teach For America Corps Member, had welcomed me into her middle school science classroom to share my knowledge in environmental health. All I had to do now was learn to teach.

"Hi, everyone! My name is Ms. Gaelle. I'll be coming to your class to learn from Ms. Bryson and from you. I want to get to know you and see how you like to learn. Then, I'll be teaching some of you about health! Does that sound good?"

With a few nods from the students, I was in! After just a couple of hours in the classroom, I witnessed the remarkable flexibility and energy that teaching requires. I also witnessed the mixture of enthusiasm and intimidation that learning creates.

I realized that education is more than just passion. What I need now are the right tools. Luckily, Ms. Bryson and the Classroom to Community program are ready with just what I’m going to need! 

ConnectEd 4 Health: Community Partners in Action

As a corps member with Teach For America, I am thrilled about the opportunity to work alongside graduate students to build on a shared passion for social justice to impact the health and education landscape here in Atlanta. The Classroom to Community seminar offers the ideal avenue to bridge the professional interests of corps members, spanning education and health policy, medicine, or public health, with the expertise of MPH candidates.

The seminar provides a forum for graduate student and corps member pairs (go team Jaime Escalante!) to deliver frontier research in primary and secondary classrooms, while further developing instructional leaders. Graduate students and corps members alike are afforded the unique opportunity to practice at the intersection of health and education, gaining exposure to a variety of scholarly and practical perspectives that will affect student outcomes and ultimately the health of surrounding communities.

The Classroom to Community seminar strengthens the ConnectEd 4 Health partnership between Rollins School of Public Health and Teach For America’s Health Leadership Track (HLT). The HLT is an initiative put forth by “health-minded” educators to create avenues of opportunity for corps members to begin addressing both the health and educational needs of students. I have no doubt the ConnectEd 4 Health partnership will renew a commitment to the students and their families in Atlanta’s most underserved communities, while laying the groundwork for a model for future collaborative efforts between Teach For America placement sites and public health institutions. It is invigorating to work with a team dedicated to partnering effectively to ensure our work advances the broader good for the children we serve.

Cheers to the formal kick-off, to the upcoming semester, and to the pursuit of our collective vision!

-Michael Turgeon, 2010 Corps Member, Teach For America

Hats Off to the Kick-off!

From left: Audra, Michael, me (Sahar), and Lolly

What an awesome kick-off event to get us started for the Classroom to Community seminar this coming semester! This past Wednesday evening, Atlanta Teach for America (TFA) teachers and Emory graduate students were brought together at Carpe Diem in Decatur to have the opportunity to meet one another, face-to-face, over some food and drinks.

It was such a wonderful experience to see everyone and acknowledge all of the effort and energy that has gone into this initiative so far. Each of us was introduced to the TFA teacher that we had been paired with—giving us a chance to further discuss our shared interests in health and education. There’s nothing more empowering and exciting than having a group of people together who are all interested in making a change—in this case, a change in our communities and schools.

Erica, Alvin, Sarah, Shawn, and Nina

At the kick-off event, Ariela had put together an activity that was designed for us to talk about ourselves and our respective fields. Some questions prompted us to share our “craziest” classroom/public health experiences, which individual inspires us, and our personal definitions of Teach for America and public health.

What I enjoyed most about meeting everyone that evening was simply listening to what it was that brought each of us to join this effort, and our specific interests in the Classroom to Community course. This is what had the most lasting impression on me.

Gaelle, Amy, Kathleen, Scot, and Jenny

I am very excited to be able to apply my public health knowledge in a classroom setting, and to learn first-hand from TFA teachers and students about the health and educational needs of our local Atlanta schools. After Wednesday’s kick-off event, it’s evident that this is just the beginning of something very big and very amazing!

- Sahar Salek, MPH Candidate, Behavioral Sciences and Health Education