Kayla May, Staff writer
In James S. Coleman’s report, “Equality of Educational Opportunity”, he stated that “the quality of teachers shows a stronger relationship [than school facilities and curricula] to pupil achievement,” and “teacher quality is one of the few school characteristics that significantly affects student performance.” With these quotes in mind, we look to examine what Saint Martin’s University education majors are working on to teach at a high quality.
The College of Education and Counseling (CEC) here at SMU has achieved great things over the past school year. Some of these accomplishments include implementing a Special Education curriculum, one of the only universities in the state to offer this as a dedicated major.
This program provides training to work in inclusionary classroom settings, a resource room, or a self-contained special education class. Tia Ridings, a junior softball player, explains that she is currently learning about IEPs, 504 plans, and other accommodations in the classroom, material that falls within the special education classroom.
The CEC was also able to save $90,000 in instructional costs over the course of the year, are working towards getting CACREP (The Counsel for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs) accreditation and have maintained their over 95% retention rate for education majors. You can read more about their progress in their fall/winter newsletter for the 22-23 school year.
They recently just had a Jamboree where they were able to “strengthen community and feelings of belonging” with education students from all programs. They had fun activities for the students to engage in and conversations about education and their practical experiences.
Alisha Saucedo, a sophomore, shares, “The education department professors are some of the most kind, caring and understanding people at this university.” Dr. Julie (Seok Young) Moon exemplifies these characteristics. Dr. Moon is one of the three faculty that was highlighted in the CEC fall/winter newsletter. Her objective has been “to help students with diverse backgrounds develop a positive self-identity”.
Samantha Harding, a junior, has this same goal. When asked why she wants to be a teacher, she answered, “Several generations have been robbed of an authentic and meaningful education due to their identities, so I want to be that educator that changes the direction and mindset of students in which inspires them to speak up about the obstacles they encounter and find passion for learning.”
The students’ visions are clear, but the path to get there isn’t always so smooth. I asked some of the students to open up about some things they’ve been struggling with. Saucedo shared that it’s been a struggle “developing creative, engaging and clear lesson plans in isolation of a curriculum, unit plan, or in-depth knowledge about a body of students I aimed to teach through the lesson.”
Giving a student-athlete perspective, Ridings explains that the 30 hours each term for practicum one and two have been a lot for her. “I’ve struggled with balancing our outside of class practicum classroom hours with all the other schoolwork, softball, and self-care time,” she shared.
Harding told me she’s been struggling with imposter syndrome. She further explained by stating, “I’m a third year, halfway done with my undergrad experience, and I am also a first-generation college student. With both of these identities intersecting, I find myself questioning my abilities or skills regarding teaching.”
Some bumps on the road aren’t enough to stop these future educators. “I can’t wait to become a teacher to begin empowering, presenting, and advocating for all students,” says Saucedo, who’s interested in teaching second grade.
Ridings, looking to teach kindergarten, says, “I’m excited to go into a field I’m passionate about and be able to help kids be who they are and inspire them to help change the world.”
The Coleman Report sparked a conversation about what our education system should look like going forward. Almost 60 years old, some of the issues brought up in the report are still an issue today. Luckily, we have future educators such as Ridings, Saucedo, and Harding who are dedicated to making real, lasting changes.
The Belltower 