Introduction Over the last seven years, working in two Midwest teacher education programs, I have become concerned with how many preservice teachers (PTs) see “curriculum” as tangible items, not a process. For many PTs, curriculum is exclusively state or federal standards or a textbook they are required to follow; so, my challenge as a teacher … Continue reading Re/Defining Curriculum: Poetry as a Pedagogical Tool by J. Scott Baker, Savanna Alfonso, Brittany R. Brinkman, Daniel Gebur, Mallory Morris, Tyler J. Rummel, and Lidiah K. Zipp
Story Train: A Strategy for Retelling, Summarizing, and Sequencing by Jongsun Wee
Reading is not an easy task for young readers. Children need to practice various reading strategies to become skillful readers. A lot of reading strategies have been shared with educators through professional books and websites.[1] Simple keywords searches on the internet will also bring many resources for teachers, including how-to videos and downloadable worksheets. Indeed, … Continue reading Story Train: A Strategy for Retelling, Summarizing, and Sequencing by Jongsun Wee
Establishing Contact: The Idea of Writing Center Studies by Jennifer Forsthoefel
In the physical writing center space, we encounter the mass differences that exist across the student and faculty population as well as the disciplines these populations are housed in. As a result, writing centers have made possible in the past, and create new possibility in the future for, teaching and learning across varying disciplines, positions, … Continue reading Establishing Contact: The Idea of Writing Center Studies by Jennifer Forsthoefel
Teaching Animal Farm in Central America by Taylore Lenway
In high school, I decided that I wanted to be an English teacher, and I followed that goal to the University of Minnesota Duluth. I cannot speak highly enough of the preparation I received, through word and example, at UMD, and despite the many curveballs thrown by COVID-19, I completed a fairly normal student teaching … Continue reading Teaching Animal Farm in Central America by Taylore Lenway
Education in the Time of Pandemic: Projects to Engage Student Inquiry by Joaquin Muñoz and Abigail Eck
The purpose of this article is to describe curricular adjustments made to a course in response to the Covid-19 pandemic which began in the United States in 2020. We intend to approach this paper in a collaborative spirit, as student and teacher, to describe the distinct experiences of implementing the adaptations we describe. While developed … Continue reading Education in the Time of Pandemic: Projects to Engage Student Inquiry by Joaquin Muñoz and Abigail Eck
Reimagining Teaching Middle School English with Digital Tools by Cami Christman and Lan Vu
The touch of a keyboard replaces the turn of a page, just one of the many ways that digital tools have transformed the educational landscape. Today’s educational experience is saturated with technology. Screen time has become a normal part of the school day for sixth grade students everywhere, and often replaces the use of pencil … Continue reading Reimagining Teaching Middle School English with Digital Tools by Cami Christman and Lan Vu
Don’t Call It “The Chinese Virus”: Asian Faculty’s Reflection on Xenophobic Naming by Jongsun Wee and Rieko Miyakuni
We are two Asian professors who teach at a state university in southeast Minnesota. At our institution, Jongsun teaches undergraduate children’s literature and literacy education classes, and Rieko teaches graduate counselor education classes. We are two of the few faculty members of color in our college. We are not Americans, but we both have lived … Continue reading Don’t Call It “The Chinese Virus”: Asian Faculty’s Reflection on Xenophobic Naming by Jongsun Wee and Rieko Miyakuni
Stuck in My Head by Madison Stuart
I am heavy with the daygravity pools thick in that soft place between ankle and heela pink sock peeks through the hole in my tennis shoeright, left, right, left say my name say my nameit’s been stuck in my head all day say my name say my nameright, left, right, left Today a boy scrawled “F EVERYTHING” … Continue reading Stuck in My Head by Madison Stuart
Using Mnemonics to Comprehend Narrative by Evan Vargas
Stories are everywhere; they seem to be things we gravitate to. As teachers we see the importance of narratives, for they allow us to make connections to the world and deepen our understanding of ourselves. Teaching students how to both enjoy a story and notice patterns that help them better connect to the world, however, … Continue reading Using Mnemonics to Comprehend Narrative by Evan Vargas
Come on in! The Water’s Fine: School Reform Begins with Me by Sheryl Lain
When I was a kid, I could not bring my toes to release their hold on the lip of the high dive, even though my girlfriend pressed me forward, begging me to hurry and jump. The first few times on that thin line in the sky, I had to retreat down the ladder, my tail … Continue reading Come on in! The Water’s Fine: School Reform Begins with Me by Sheryl Lain
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