Academy offers teachers a lesson for students

The Baltimore Sun

Dozens of Maryland public school teachers returned to the classroom this summer, this time taking a seat behind the desks.

From counties throughout the state, they gathered at Towson University to learn how to teach their students to do their jobs.

Their meetings were preparation for the Teacher Academy of Maryland, a career and technology education program that introduces high school students to teaching.

For two weeks, educators participated in the Teacher Academy of Maryland Summer Leadership institutes. The weeklong sessions serve to help teachers feel comfortable handling the curriculum, which uses college-level texts and was written by Towson professors, said Pamela Williams Morgan, Towson's project co-coordinator for the academy, who organized the institutes.

"This is actually a pretty select group of people," said Nancy Shapiro, associate vice chancellor for academic affairs for the University System of Maryland, which manages the federal grant that funds the summer sessions. "They're going to be models for what we hope is the next generation of kids coming out of the public schools who are thinking about being teachers."

Karen Blair, assistant dean of Towson's College of Education, echoed Shapiro as she spoke to the teachers Monday.

"You're being the exemplar of what good teaching, and the teaching profession, is all about," Blair said.

The institutes also foster a statewide community for academy instructors, Shapiro said.

Created with partners from state universities, community colleges, the Maryland Higher Education Commission and the state Department of Education, the Teacher Academy of Maryland involves high school courses and an internship for students interested in the education field. Among the main class components: "Human Growth and Development," "Teaching as a Profession" and "Foundations of Curriculum and Instruction."

This week, educators turned their attention to the latter course, the "nuts and bolts of what it means to become a teacher," said Todd Kenreich, associate professor of secondary education at Towson.

"You know most of this stuff already," he said. "The challenge for you will be ... [explaining] it."

The institutes also tackled some of the "unresolved issues" of the program, Morgan said. Five study groups of experienced academy teachers who have attended the required summer sessions zeroed in on those issues, which included making college texts and culminating portfolios accessible to high school students, figuring out the internship portion of the program and preparing students to manage a classroom.

Some teachers at this week's institute also asked about another aspect of the program still in the works: earning college credits for the successful completion of the requirements.

Beth Kauffman, a Montgomery County teacher who plans to offer "Teaching as a Profession" this fall, noted that students would not necessarily attend a Maryland college or university.

"How do I make it appealing to them as well?" Kauffman asked.

While there are no agreements with out-of-state schools -- the focus is on Maryland institutions and, if possible, on keeping homegrown candidates in the state -- some suggested the enterprising student could negotiate.

A statement from the Department of Education, handed to an admissions officer at a school outside Maryland, should be enough to determine whether that institution will also apply such credits, said Ceilon Aspensen, a Baltimore high school art teacher.

Somerset County teacher Sue Cornelious said she was working to ensure Salisbury University and Wor-Wic Community College would transfer those credits, paving the way for her students.

"This is something they can hook into ... [and] know there's a job out there for them," Cornelious said, adding that Somerset is aiming to keep future teachers in the state -- and ideally, the county.

About half of the 24 state school systems have adopted the academy, Morgan said, including Baltimore City and Baltimore, Carroll, Harford and Howard counties.

The academy is designed to respond to a persistent need for qualified teachers and to encourage more students to consider careers in secondary education. A state staffing report released last fall identified every school system as a geographic area expected to suffer a shortage.

During a presentation earlier in the week, Kenreich gave his adult students an assignment: Write adjectives describing the "best" teacher in their schools.

Aspensen spoke of a law teacher she described as consistent, creative and collaborative.

Genee Green, another Baltimore educator, added innovative, dedicated, approachable and nurturing to the list.

Still others chimed in: Hands-on. Enthusiastic. Holds students to high standards.

"Wouldn't it be wonderful if the people at the end of the Teacher Academy ... if we could use some of those descriptors for them?" Kenreich said. "Ask yourselves: What type of new teachers are we creating? ... You really have to believe that we're going to build on what we receive."

arin.gencer@baltsun.com

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