The 2013-2014 school year was filled with true educational drama. Emotionally I was mentally drained and wondered how I would be able to muster up the strength to share with my new arrivals, my true passion for science.  Last school year I can recall was one of my best years in science education.  I taught relevant science and I had my students engaged in activities just about every other day.

Fast forward this year, with the new administration, there are new expectations and they are all mostly centered on “test scores”.   Student’s performance on these assessments’ will now be a direct reflection of me as a teacher.  I would be the first to say that I have hit a brick wall; how do I teach to a test I have no idea.

A parent came in for a conference and basically told me that his child was “bored” with my class. I was a bit bothered by his statement but I am fully aware that this is directly due to my nervousness about testing. My goal moving forward is to renew my lost passion and figure out that balance in order to bring life back into my classroom.  I truly feel her pain because I am also bored to tears!

This was a tough conversation to have but as a result of my parent conference, I had an epiphany my “aha moment” so to speak.  Due to my Kenan Fellowship, I have nothing but educational ammunition to be that exciting science teacher I once was but still teach the state standard.  I have so many resources and a cohort of supporters, all I have to do is make connections and or ask for help.

One thing that has piqued my interest as a result of my Kenan fellowship experience is my awareness of the existing resources/ programs that are available at NCSU that has the potential to enrich student learning and guide them to gravitate towards careers in Science.

Touring various facilities and conversing with the faculty and students, made me realized that NCSU is an academically rich community.  The perception among many including myself was that both Duke and UNC were the leaders and innovators in the region and would hardly if ever hear any mention of what this school has to offer.   This opportunity  definitely changed the false perception and I am now aware that NCSU is as much on the cutting edge and offers students a rich education comparable to the above mentioned schools.

Thanks to Kenan, I now have the pleasure of disseminating this invaluable information to my students and continue to spread the word to my school community.

As an educator I am a proponent for the use of social media to enhance/ enrich the learning experience of students.  However, I do also fully understand that parents reserve the overall right to decline some methods of content delivery.  Although teachers may have the best of intentions when considering incorporating social media  as part of teaching, students at times will try to push the envelop and utilize this tool inappropriately.

Additionally,  due to the growing diversity of schools it is becoming very tricky to accommodate and not act on selfish reasons when it comes to deciding for example on the use of technology.  We have to be mindful that some parents may not be able to afford internet connection at home, and this often singles out a child in the presence of their peers.  Also some parents are very protective and may not want their child to be exposed to such form of communication at such a tender age.

As with every tough decision, there are benefits and pitfalls.  Being a responsible user is what we can hope for but unfortunately that is not always the case.  In this instance at times it is just safer to not add one additional thing to have to micromanage and be nervous about litigation. For that reason alone I can see both the sides of this argument and do not stand in judgment of the school’s decision.