Somehow I forgot we had to blog so consumed with the Capstone and everything else.
This is a great topic when I hear the Touro values I feel good i chose this school their values align with my life values. Touro was founded on the universal values of commitment to social justice, intellectual pursuit, and service to humanity. As teachers these are the values we strive to serve everyday. I have often felt that as teachers this would be a pledge we make to uphold these values our students deserve nothing less. On my very early teaching adventure while student teaching at Vintage I found myself drawn to the students who were falling behind, struggling, wondering why , what I could do to help. At one point I was told I cared too much we can't save them all. That was a life changing moment, how can we not ? As a very young teacher, young mother, and a person who channels the optimism of Polly Anna I was really doing some serious soul searching about what I really wanted to do as an educator. There is a plan out there for us all. I was offered a science teaching job at Vintage and I turned it down I was worried that I was making a huge mistake as a brand new teacher but that was what I did. This is when the opportunity that has shaped be as an adult educator happened. I took an evening job at the Adult School helping adults earn their high school diploma. This was such a rewarding experience and many of the students were 10 to 15 years older than me. I learned many valuable lessons from these students and I am forever grateful. Their struggles were real and it was inspiring to help them reach their goal to graduate. One of the best things that has ever happened to me was when I accepted a job at Temescal partnering with Chris McCluer in the Second Chance program. This was the experience that grew me as an adult educator. Chris was the best mentor I could have ever asked for and the students who have been in my classes have taught me so many life lessons. My work at Temescal / Valley Oak is very much the work of social justice, acceptance of diversity, and compassion and service to society. Everyday as challenging as it can be I know I am making a difference in the lives of students who felt like they were running out of options. The area that I have been growing in the most recently is collaborating with my peers. I have always been open to collaborating but now I really feel like I have more to offer, I have strong thoughts about education, and have learned so much in this program. I have spoken to my principal sharing with her how I would like to work wit her to provide some professional development as well as working to develop the collaboration among our staff. I have spent most of my years working with my students developing Friday Night Live and our ASB. My interests are shifting to working with my peers because I feel that is a big area of need at Valley Oak. So my goal is to continue to develop as a life long learner, to develop a more collaborative environment as I continue to respect and value of each individual. The work of my Capstone will continual to be a central part of my work throughout my career. How can we as math educators not have increasing students passing rates, increasing understanding, and developing a love for learning math not be a top priority. Students should not be failing math at such high rates we need a Math Revolution. I will continue to seek out training, resources, and new innovations to support my math students. I will continue to work with my principal, Napa Learns, and the district to increase math scores. I will also continue to work with Professor Harry Cheng at UC Davis, he said he would like to post my Capstone on his website so I will look into how I go about doing that. This program was just what I needed to get me rejuvenated as an educator giving me important work to continue as I wrap up my teaching career . So much to do so little time ! Thank you Touro for the shared values it has made the purpose for working towards my Masters even clearer to me.
1 Comment
Rafael Garcia Avila
7/10/2019 07:18:54 pm
Julie,
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Julie LovieJulie Lovie Is a Math and Science teacher at Valley Oak High School with 25 years experience in teaching at a continuation high school. Julie Also teaches at Napa valley Adult School in the High School Diploma Program. She is passionate about the environment, loves gardening, and learning. Archives
June 2019
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