TPTE Newsletter, Fall 2014

FROM ARCHITECTURE TO EDUCATION

TPTENEWS

FALL 2014

THE NEWSLETTER FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF THEORY & PRACTICE IN TEACHER EDUCATION

Department of Theory & Practice in Teacher Education

Q&A WITH CHRISTOPHER WRIGHT Assistant Professor, Science Education

Q: Why did you switch careers from an architect to an educator?

Q: Where did you grow up?

A: I was born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, which is pretty different from Knoxville! I lived and worked there for more than three decades.

Q: What is your educational background?

A: I earned a Bachelor of Architecture from Hampton University and went on to earn my master’s degree in technology education from the University of Maryland– Eastern Shore. My doctorate is in science education from Tufts University.

A: I realized that my first career choice was just not the right one for me. I entered a graduate program for technology education, and that was definitely the right fit! Once I started teaching I never left.

Q: Who is your teaching role model?

A: Definitely my dad, George Wright Jr. He was an educator who worked with underserved populations in Baltimore his whole life—both as a teacher and a vice principal. I volunteered in his school for community service and saw his positive impact first hand.

Q: What is your favorite aspect about being a faculty member in TPTE? A: I really enjoy working with my colleagues here.

Q: Before arriving at UT, you secured an engineering education grant. What is the status of that grant?

A: The project, Multimedia Engineering Notebook Tools to Support Engineering Discourse in Urban Elementary Classrooms, seeks to develop, implement, and study multimedia engineering notebook tools that support urban elementary students’ engagement in engineering practices. We focus on the practices of planning/brainstorming and redesign, and within those practices, the activity of reflection on design decisions—both one’s own design decisions and the design decisions of others. In other words, we are interested in promoting and supporting students’ reflective decision-making throughout the planning and redesign steps of the engineering design process for any engineering challenge or curriculum. I’ve been working with students at Maynard Elementary and Green Math and Science Magnet School.

WRIGHT BY THE NUMBERS

13

3

8

age he met the future Mrs. Wright

number of children

number of years he taught at Baltimore Polytechnic Institute, his alma mater

TPTENEWS | FALL 2014

W

elcome to the inaugural edition of the Theory and Practice in Teacher Education (TPTE) biannual newsletter.

TPTE, one of four departments housed within the Graduate School of Education (GSE) and the College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences (CEHHS), is a vibrant and large department with about forty full-time faculty, seven administrative staff, about thirty graduate assistants, and more than 400 students enrolled in undergraduate, master’s, educational specialist, and PhD programs.

The department is also home to the Center on Deafness, which has a long tradition of offering grant-funded programs to enhance the lives of individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing, as well as Connections for Education Outreach, which offers consultative and assessment services in K–12 schools in East Tennessee.

NEW FACULTY MEMBER

Our mission is “to develop innovative, research-based programs for teachers, teacher educators, and educational interpreters; to work in close harmony

with schools and educators across the university, in the state, region, nation, and world for the improvement of education and educational interpreting; to develop leadership in scholarly research and writing; and to participate and assume leadership in professional organizations.”

few of our many impressive and dedicated alumnae and partners.

TPTE prepares teachers to work in elementary, middle, and secondary settings across the content areas; with special populations (special education, deaf and hard of hearing and English language learners); and as interpreters in a range of settings.

We also prepare advanced students to work as scholars and leaders in universities and applied settings.

On October 28 and 29, the department will host an event, in conjunction with CEHHS and the Graduate School of Education’s annual Billie Grace Goodrich Lecture, in order to recognize members of a newly formed TPTE Council—a dedicated group of faculty and advisory board members and supporters of TPTE.

Through this newsletter we hope to make you aware of a sampling of the teaching, scholarship, and outreach activities undertaken by our talented faculty, staff, and students, and to highlight some accomplishments of a

TPTE has launched an effort to heighten awareness of and support for our initiatives and students, and we encourage readers to become a department supporter by being a friend or partner in fall 2014.

Sherry Mee Bell Department Head

Yujeong Park

Assistant Professor, Special Education Yujeong Park received her master’s degree in exceptional children, with a learning disabilities concentration from Seoul National University. She taught students with severe/multiple disabilities literacy and communication skills at a public special education school in Seoul, South Korea. Since she was accepted into the special education doctoral program at the University of Florida in 2009, Park’s research has focused on effective instructional practices and reading assessment for students with disabilities. In 2013, she graduated with a PhD in special education with a minor in research and evaluation methodology.

Park has delivered more than thirty presentations at national and international conferences, including AERA, CEC, IRA, and TED, and is an author on thirteen peer-reviewed publications. Her honors include the University of Florida’s College of Education’s Fien Dissertation Award in 2012 and Korean Honor Scholarship from the Korean Embassy of the United States in 2011. Other awards received include the Outstanding International Student Award for the College of Education, Qualitative Research Award by the Council for Exceptional Children Teacher Education Division and the Rosser Family Graduate Scholarship.

She has been selected by the Council for Exceptional Children’s Division for Research (CEC-DR) through a national competition to participate in the 2012–2013 cohort of Doctoral Student Scholars in Special Education Research. She recently received the 2014 Michael B. Salwen Scholars Award by the Korean-American Educational Researchers Association.

Her professional goals include delving deeper into research on effective literacy intervention and assessment for students with high incidence disabilities and supporting general and special education teachers to better design and implement their reading instructions in inclusive classroom settings.

Awards Amos Hatch, professor, received the 2014 Louis M. and Betty M. Phillips Faculty Support in Education Award.

This endowed award is given to an outstanding faculty member in the College of Education, Health, and Human Sciences for teaching and research efforts to support education.

Our Alumni ELIZABETH (RIPLEY) MACTAVISH

Elizabeth MacTavish, a current science education doctoral student in TPTE, is pursuing her third degree from UT. She graduated in 2000 with a BS in pre-teaching science and interned in a seventh-grade science classroom at Farragut Middle School as part of her teacher licensure program.

MacTavish earned her teaching license for first through eighth grades and her master’s degree in teacher education in 2001. After teaching middle grades science for four years in Orlando, Florida, she returned to FMS as a seventh-grade science teacher. In addition to teaching, MacTavish also coaches the FMS girls’ track team.

TPTE Council WORKING GROUP SHERRY MEE BELL, TPTE

department head

MARILYN LIBERMAN, CEHHS/ TPTE Board of Advisors member CLARA LEE BROWN, TPTE

faculty member and chair of the TPTE International/Intercultural Committee

KRISTIN REARDEN, TPTE faculty member and newsletter co-editor;

JOAN GRIM, TPTE faculty member and CEHHS/GSE Community Relations Committee member.

Theresa Hopkins, clinical associate

Her achievements for teaching and coaching include: • Tennessee PTSA Lifetime Achievement Award recipient (2008) • National PTSA Lifetime Achievement Award recipient (2011) • Farragut Middle School Teacher of the Year (2010, 2011, 2012) • Tyler Duke Teacher of the Year Award (2012) • University of Tennessee Marian E. Oates Teacher Enrichment Award (2013) • Knox County Girls Track Coach of the Year (2010, 2012) • Knox County Track Coach of the Year (2014)

professor, was recently appointed as a three-year national executive board member to the UTeach Institute’s STEM Educators Association (USEA).

The purpose of the board is to promote the development of STEM literacy for all students through innovation and excellence in university-based teacher education.

David Cihak, associate professor, was the recipient of the 2014 CEHHS Tunstall Faculty award.

Kimberly Wolbers, associate professor, was the recipient of the 2014 Chancellor’s Award for Professional Promise in Research and Creative Achievement.

Teresa Allmon, administrative co-

ordinator II, received the 2014 TPTE Department Staff Award. She was also recognized for ten years of service to the college.

Pat Flynn, administrative support

assistant III, received the 2014 College Tunstall Staff award. She was also recognized for forty years of service to the university.

STEERING COMMITTEE KATIE CYPHERS KATHY EBENER ELLEN WATSON JAMES MARILYN LIBERMAN ROY MILLER CATHY STUBBS TPTE Council Mission Statement

Enhancing awareness, appreciation, and support for the work of the Department of Theory and Practice in Teacher Education. The mission of the TPTE council is to promote the mission and goals of TPTE in its preparation of educators and interpreters to provide innovative and effective services in Tennessee, across the country, and around the world. The council is comprised of civic-minded individuals deeply committed to the idea that quality education is essential for a thriving and just democracy. The TPTE council serves to create and enhance connections among TPTE faculty, students, alumni, and partners in schools, business, and the broader community. The council further serves to promote public awareness, appreciation, and support of K–12 education and those who provide it tirelessly and with dedication.

Finally, the TPTE council serves to generate financial support and resources necessary to fully realize the goals of TPTE.

Patti Fagg, administrative support

assistant III, was recognized for thirty-five years of service to the university.

Sherry Mee Bell, department head, was the recipient of the 2014 College Senate Faculty Mentoring award.

Anne McGill-Franzen, professor, and her doctoral student, Jennifer Lubke, received the Helen B. Watson Faculty/Student award for Outstanding Doctoral Dissertation.

Jamie

Smith, doctoral student in special education, deaf education, and interpreter education, received the 2014–2015 Graduate School Fellowship.

Eric Moore, doctoral student in

special education, deaf education, and interpreter education, received the 2014–2015 Graduate School Diversity Enhancement Fellowship.

NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT NO. 481 KNOXVILLE, TN

Department of Theory & Practice in Teacher Education 1122 Volunteer Boulevard Knoxville, Tennessee 37996-3442

Spring and Summer Events Pattie Davis-Wiley, professor of world languages and ESL education, facilitated the

sixth annual Tennessee Foreign Language Teaching Association (TFLTA) Regional World Language Workshop. The all-day event was held on

March 29 at Farragut High School in Knox County. UT departmental co-sponsors included TPTE, the Department of Classics, and the Department of Modern Foreign Languages and Literatures. Ninety-two participants from around the region attended language-specific concurrent sessions. Many of the presenters have made available their presentations at tiny.utk.edu/toLFa.

TPTE faculty and students, in collaboration with the Boys and Girls Club of the Tennessee Valley, conducted a summer tutoring program focused on literacy. Deborah Wooten and Amy Broemmel, associate professors, donated 359 books from the International Reading Association’s Children’s Choices book project to support this program.

Jo Ann Cady and Mehmet Aydeniz, associate professors, attended the Science and

Math Teacher Imperative (SMTI) National Conference in Milwaukee in

June. Cady also presented at the Mathematics and Science Elementary Education conference at Austin Peay State University. She attended the Tennessee STEM Education Leadership Council meeting in Johnson City, Tennessee, and the STEM Education conference at East Tennessee State University.

Chonika Coleman-King, assistant professor, and Susan Groenke, associate professor, are working together on a project

that qualitatively explores how nontraditional, multimodal course content such as young adult literature,

movies, photos, and video clips can help pre-service teachers develop an understanding of racial and socioeconomic inequities and their impact on children in urban communities and schools.

Kimberly Wolbers, associate professor, and Brenda Stephenson, senior lecturer, will be conducting a professional development opportunity focused on strategies for

supporting thirty K–12 deaf education professionals with implement-

ing the Common Core State Standards for reading in the content areas. The summer workshop is sponsored by the Tennessee Higher Education Commission and was held at the Tennessee School for the Deaf in July.

Book publications Coleman-King, C. (2014). The (Re-)Making of a Black American: Tracing the Racial and Ethnic Socialization of Caribbean American Youth (Vol. 51). Peter Lang.

The University of Tennessee is an EEO/AA/Title VI/Title IX/Section 504/ADA/ADEA institution in the provision of its education and employment programs and services. All qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sex, pregnancy, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, physical or mental disability, or covered veteran status. A project of the Department of Theory & Practice in Teacher Education with assistance from the Creative Communications group of the UT Office of Communications & Marketing. PAN E01-1755-001-15. Job 80507