Effecting Change

Effecting change and developing the STEM skills of students is what drove me to pursue my Master's from Walden. In my first teaching experience, we were not to teach our students science or social studies because they were so behind in reading, writing and math. However, our state mandated a state science assessment the same year our administration made that decision. Our students were ill-prepared and I felt that I had committed a great disservice.

Because of that experience, I knew that I wanted to be a science teacher. This year, I have the opportunity to do what I have always wanted to as a science specials teacher. I get to provide hands-on, inquiry-based science for 15 different classes of kindergarten through 2nd grade students.

The greatest challenge I face now in my position is in terms of time. I only have 40 minutes, twice a week, with each group of students. This lack of time really limits the activities I am able to do and the depth at which we can explore topics. Time is also a factor in my abilities to plan effectively as I am creating a new curriculum, basically alone, as this is a brand new position within the school. I am able to collaborate with the 3-6 science specials teacher every two weeks for about an hour, which does not seem to be enough time. During our time together, we are really trying to develop our program and identify the logistics of our teaching and what we want each grade level to be able to do to be successful for the following year.