1. SUBJECT MATTER KNOWLEDGE-BASE IN GENERAL AND LIBERAL EDUCATION
An understanding and appreciation of general and liberal arts including English, literature, humanities,
social sciences, mathematics, natural or physical sciences, and the arts, and the ability to:
A. Synthesize, analyze, reflect upon, and write with
clarity and structure about ideas, information, and
data from a general and liberal education, and the
relationships between the various disciplines
See above narrative
B. Understand and appreciate free inquiry in
English, literature, humanities, social sciences,
mathematics, natural or physical sciences, and the
arts
I incorporated in my U.S. history class a primary
source about a forgotten African American war hero
during the revolutionary war. It was a old newspaper
clip obituary of his death and told of a great deed he
did during the revolutionary war.
The students were given the chance to inquire into
what caused his death and his wife’s death which
took place an hour after his funeral.
I spent a semester living in the international I-House
for a year. Living in a bed of diversity and range of
people coming from, Mexico, Germany, France,
Japan, and Spain. I was given the chance up front to
see the different types of cultures, languages, and
countries and get an understanding and see the
differences and similarities in what is valued around
the world.
The classroom that I have worked in has mirrored
the society that we live into today. I have had the
privilege of going to a diverse school and student
teaching in a diverse school such as Jackson
Parkside. Not only is each race different and unique
but each individual and that must be understood as a
educator.
Albion college is a school not only of different races
but of religions and I was given the opportunity to
do a case study on an Arab Muslim who gave me
great insight into the history of the IsraeliPalestinian conflict in the middle east and what it
feels like to be a Arab after the 9/11 terrorist attack
Within my class respect is a requirement for my
students and everyone has the right to speak no
matter who they are. Every student has the right to
speak, ask a question, call for help and be heard. No
matter what that person has to say.
As a History Major I understand that the world has
made more technological strides over the last
century then the world has over the last thousand
years. Are world has become smaller place because
of it and you really be successful in America without
it. That is why such things as PowerPoint, document
cams, films, and many other cool gadgets are used in
my lessons.
C. Understand global and international perspectives
of the disciplines
D. Understand the tenets of a free, democratic, and
pluralistic society
E. Understand and respect varying points of view
and the influence of one’s own and others’ ethics
and values
F. Understand and respect the role, rights, and value
of the individual in a free democratic society
G. Understand technology and its use for gathering,
processing, evaluating, analyzing, and
communicating ideas and information
H. Understand the similarities and differences within
our culture that support the importance of common
good and responsible citizenship within our
American society
I. Understand the constitutions and histories of the
United States and Michigan
J. Understand and respect individual differences,
including the differences
identified within the State Board of Education (SBE)
Universal Education Vision and Principles
K. Demonstrate the abilities and skills necessary for
effective communication in speech, writing, and
multimedia using content, form, voice, and style
appropriate to the audience and purpose (e.g., to
reflect, persuade, inform, analyze, entertain, inspire).
I see the classroom as a place preparing students for
the real world. It is a practice field. Michael Jordan
said how you play is how you practice.
Responsibility, respect, being on time to class are
day to day requirement for my students and I try to
stress that to students who show that they can’t do it.
During Maymester I created a lesson plan based off
the Brownfield’s in Albion. Albion has over 70
Brownfield’s and many more all over Albion from
the industry they used to run the state of Michigan. I
had my students try to locate which Brownfield’s
were closest to their street and help them understand
that these were dangerous areas.
I had a number of students with a different range of
disabilities throughout my student teaching and had
to adjust and adapt my lesson plans to accommodate
them. I was faced with deaf, blind, ADHD, and
dyslexic students.
I was placed in a school for my student teaching in
which they scored low in reading and writing. The
goal of the school was to improve reading
comprehension and writing. A lot of my students
had bad writing skills. I implemented a lesson in
which I wrote one sentence down about a topic we
have learned. The students would re write the
sentence and then add another sentence related to the
first sentence. It helped them think about the
material and what they learned and write a unified
and complete sentence and paragraph about a topic.