What I do
Teaching
I am deeply aware that education is a way to provide opportunity and advancement, both of my parents are immigrants to the United States. Learning and the practice of teaching are deeply democratic undertakings which posit that an educated populace benefits society as a whole, not just those who individually benefit from schooling. Teaching is a relational practice that promotes the greater good, and in my work I seek to create trusting classroom spaces that both value difference and promote critical thinking.
Professional Development
Professional development has earned its negative reputation among teachers. More often than not, presenters who are removed from the practice of teaching present ideas and concepts that do not address the vastly different levels of experience among the educators that are in the room.
My approach to professional development acknowledges and prioritizes groups different experience levels, which is a strength of healthy organizations. In preparing to support the work that you and your colleagues do, I will utilize data and questionnaires in fashioning an experiential agenda that will appeal to educators of different levels and content areas, thereby increasing engagement and execution of newly gained skills and standpoints.
Mentorship & Coaching
Finding mentors among overworked educators can be a struggle. Often, finding industry colleagues to fill a mentorship role does not happen as naturally as we would like. Stringent and vigilant evaluation protocols and over-testing can be challenging to address during busy teaching schedules. Feelings of inadequacy can exacerbate stress and undermine strengths. Using a solutions-oriented approach, I can work with you – or your staff – to manage barriers that prevent you from accomplishing the vision you have for your role in a complex educational environment.
Curriculum Design
Designing curriculum is a practice of priorities and is fundamentally related to the purposes of education and the goals of the particular course being taught. In designing curricula, I employ a reverse-order model that directly addresses moral, social, and political questions. The process is additionally guided by disciplinary and state standards. Most importantly, successfully implemented curricula requires a dynamic teacher who has internalized the guiding documents and made the work of presenting the material uniquely their own.
Writing
As a writer focusing on issues of social justice in education, I strive to present content in an approachable tone which focuses on the real-world impacts of policy choices. Educational issues can seem incongrously both complex yet familiar to a public which tends to extrapolate and generalize their individual experiences. Approaches to education are thus founded on the experiences of individuals from of over 18,000 school districts. Writing about education requires a nuanced approach, one that is able to impact both national and local readers by making these disparate circumstances personally relevant.
Speaking
Let optimism and encouragement set the tone. My presentations bring expertise and insights about teaching and managing challenges to engage and inspire your educational community. Using captivating participatory techniques, participants will leave informed and energized to reshape their teaching strategies. I present easy-to-adopt approaches building on competencies that educators already possess which can be brought to their classrooms immediately. Your educators will leave our time together empowered and inspired to implement sustainable changes to their writing instruction – regardless of field – and experience improved relationships with students.
- Curriculum
- Book
- Technical Writing
- Editorial Writing