Spearman
Jessica
Master of Arts in Education
Michigan State University
2010
Fall Semester
TE802 Reflections and Inquiry into Teaching Practice I
Betsy Ferrer
This course focused on specific English literacy instruction throughout our internship year. This included looking at how planning with specific goals and objectives in mind, equate to thorough, well thought out lesson plans that provide impactful learning. Additionally, the course focused on development of our teaching philosophies that would transcend into our future classrooms.
2011
Spring Semester
TE803 Professional Roles and Teaching Practices II
Gary Sykes
I took this course during my internship year and it specifically focused on the ways in which we must look at ourselves as professionals both inside and outside of the classroom. The focus was placed on professional development, relationship building, and ways in which we, as novel teachers, were able to establish ourselves within a community of professionals.
Spring Semester
TE804 Reflection and Inquiry into Teaching Practices II
Betsy Ferrer
As a continuation of TE 802, the course continued to focus on English instruction in the classroom that aligned with state and national standards. The course provided invaluable feedback about lesson planning and teaching in a way that was reflective of our own teaching philosophies. The course also introduced me to different ways of teaching assigned curriculum, specifically bridging cannonical texts with modern texts for my students. Furthermore, each student completed a inquiry centered on student writing. I focused on persuasive writing, and how to get my students more committed and involved with their arguments.
2012
Summer Semester
ED800 Educational Inquiry
Steven Weiland
As an introduction to the MAED program through Michigan State, this course allowed my classmates and I to dive into the theories that shaped many of the teaching philosophies we have come to know. Throughout this course, I found how much of the fundamentals of my undergraduate study through MSU were also shaped by these theorist, whose practices and ideas created a shared vision among their followers. We also looked at how these philosophies changed with the adaptation of technology. Since this was the beginning of the online MAED program, we were asked to look at how technology shapes our understanding academically.
Summer Semester
TE843 Secondary Reading Assessment and Instruction
Doug Hartman
TE843 looked at the types of reading students experience within their duration in school. Specifically, it aimed to debunk the reasoning behind why student reading scores deteriorate after 8th grade, and what can be done to increase comprehension and understanding among adolescents. In the literacy goals and assessment assingment, I look at the ways I can intertwine literacy goals and assessments into the curriculum of a 9th grade classroom.
​Summer Semester
EAD 877 Program Planning and Evaluation in Postsecondary Contexts
William H. Arnold
As I began to build and refine the student council program at the school I was teaching at, EAD 877 provided me with invaluable insight as to how I should look at the program as a whole. This course forced me to look at the big picture, and what was needed to run a successful program that not only incorporated students, but also how it incorporated staff on various levels. The Belief Statement assignment was used to help focus and shape what we felt was important to our profession, and the programs in which we worked with. A strong foundation of values and beliefs ultimately translated into a shared vision of those whom we worked with.
Fall Semester
TE846 Accomodating Literacy Learners
Guofang Li
TE846 challenged its students to think about our students' literacies and ways in which they were incorporated in our classrooms. This focused on the various literacies students may encounter throughout their lives. Specifically, the literacies that they learn in school and those that they bring with them from outside of school. Through careful studies of our own literacy development and our students, we were able to draw parallels and observe differences between the two. These findings were essential to the way in which I approached reading in classroom, and as a result I began designing a summer reading workshop for my students. The autobiographical sketch outlines my own literacy experiences to provide a framework for understanding the literacy experiences of my students.
2013
Spring Semester
EAD822 Engaging Diverse Students and Families
Muhamaad Khalifa
EAD822 was the course that pushed me most outside of my comfort zone, and changed the way I looked at equity and ownership of education. The course focused on the ways in which our current and former educational system provides for diverse students and families. It paid special attention to the way in which we, as educators, can be beacons for change in our schools and neighborhoods. The Critical Reaction Essay synthesizes the connection between parent involvement, and how the incarceration rate plays a direct part in lack of involvement in the lives of urban youth.
Summer Semester
EAD801 Leadership and Organizational Development
Nancy Colflesh
This course, like many courses, I have taken through the MAED program, challenged me to think about how I interpret leadership in both a personal and professional setting. The course book, The Truth About Leadership by James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, altered the way I thought about myself as a leader, and what I believe constituted a good leader. It was the perfect culminating point to my concentration area, Postsecondary Leadership.
Summer Semester
ED870 Capstone
Matthew Koehler
The Capstone course, ED870, allowed me to reflect and synthesize on the culmination of what I have learned throughout the MAED program. Specifically, the course opened the door for collaboration between other MAED and MAET students to create a community of learners that celebrated and assessed what we have learned during our duration in the program.