Our local school district partners are so important and are an integral part of the success of the program.
Partners
Prince George's County Public Schools
Collaborating TEACHERS
Local public school teachers work closely with our undergraduates to develop inquiry-based lessons in science and math. Teachers provide constructive feedback to help undergraduates build upon their knowledge base.
Photo: Left to right; Holly Riley, Northwestern High School and Juan Foreman, College Park Academy, participated in the Learning Community Day for collaborating teachers. Teachers performed the tasks with the lens of teachers and student learners.
SPECIAL INITIATIVES
Shared Master Teacher Model and Paid Internship Opportunity
Terrapin Teachers has implemented a new shared master teacher initiative that provides unique and exciting opportunities for our program and the local school district. The initiative involves hiring additional master teachers, but rather than the master teachers being full-time employees of the University of Maryland (UMD), the individuals are teachers in the Montgomery County Public School System (MCPS) who are assigned by their school district to work 60% of their time with Terrapin Teachers.
There are many advantages to this arrangement. The shared master teachers will be part of an exciting college-level program and experience college teaching. Terrapin Teachers will gain individuals who are intimately involved in the schools and bring their expertise and collaborations, and the schools join the Professional Development School (PDS) program and get access to, and involvement with Terrapin Teachers Teachers and the University of Maryland. Another added value to this shared master teacher model is that even when the master teachers return to their schools full-time, they will maintain collaboration and contact with the university, allowing for continued sharing of ideas and opportunities for Terrapin Teachers students who will complete their internships in their schools during apprentice teaching.
Our first shared master teacher who began fall 2016 was Julie Brenner, a very experienced mathematics teacher at Northwood High School. Julie works with TT 60% of the time and spends 40% of her time teaching at Northwood High School. Her participation in Terrapin Teachers will continue for three years, after which time she will return full-time to Northwood. Using the same model, we hired two shared master teachers who joined our team during the fall 2017 semester. Kayla Freeman, a mathematics teacher at Paint Branch High School and Steven Karig, a science teacher at Northwood High School.
The shared master teachers will co-teach our introductory courses, TLPL 101 and TLPL 102. In addition to teaching, the master teachers will serve as mentors to students in the Master's Certification program, who will complete a paid internship at the master teachers' schools. As paid interns, the graduate students will be the teachers of record as long-term substitutes. A pilot of the paid internship model was implemented at Northwood High School during the spring 2017 semester. Hannah McIlvried and Elyse Sauer shared a long-term substitute position in mathematics. During the 2017-2018 academic year, Angel Yee and David Lee will fill long-term substitute positions in mathematics and science, respectively.
2018 Maryland Mathematics and Science Institute (MMSI)
Terrapin Teachers co-hosted the 2018 Maryland Mathematics and Science Institute (MMSI) in collaboration with faculty from the Department of Mathematics on June 25-28, 2018. Teachers from 23 local schools in Prince George’s County, Montgomery County and Washington, D.C. participated in lectures and discussions focused on cutting-edge research from UMD faculty during the morning sessions. The afternoon sessions were facilitated by Terrapin Teachers Master Teachers. Activities concentrated on pedagogical strategies that could be implemented in the high school classrooms.
Terrapin Teachers would like to give a very special thank you to all of the speakers who presented during the four-day workshop. Listed below are the names of the speakers.
MMSI Math Speakers
Dr. Wiseley Wong, Department of Mathematics
Dr. Larry Washington, Department of Mathematics
Dr. Kasso Okoudjou, Department of Mathematics
Dr. Frances Gulick, Department of Mathematics
Dr. Denny Gulick, Department of Mathematics
MMSI Science Speakers
Dr. Amitabh Varnesh, CMNS Dean (opening remarks)
Dr. Najib El-Sayed, Department of Cell Biology & Molecular Genetics
Dr. Carlos Machado, Department of Biology
Dr. Philip DeShong, Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry
Dr. Todd Cooke, Department of Cell Biology & Molecular Genetics
Dr. Cerruti Hooks, Department of Entomology
Dr. Arthur N. Popper, Department of Biology
Dr. Tim Canty, Department of Atmospheric & Oceanic Science
Dr. Ross Salawitch, Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry
