Mary+Kate+Meyer

=Mary Kate Meyer's Reflection for The Ensworth School Math Science Committee=

My Position at The Ensworth School: High School Science Teacher, 9th grade Level 1 Biology and Chemistry, Level 3 Biology
What makes a Science Department best in class? I would initially say a passion by the teachers to continually improve upon their knowledge and teaching methods. The next question would be, how does a teacher go about doing these things? I would agree with Anna Tuttle, of the Ensworth High School Science Department, that teachers must always maintain a focus on staying on top of the latest technology and available knowledge. Attending conferences and applicable workshops may be the best way to do this. I am unsure of how much this applies to the math department as math concepts are not as revolving and quickly expanding as Science. In all honesty, my vision of a school, when I consider where my own children would go, would be exactly what Ensworth promotes itself as having- teachers that ultimately have both a love of teaching and a love for the students. I don't have a complex understanding of how to teach concepts as opposed to just content, but stressing and focusing on the concepts that potentially carry over into more than one field of study seems to be a way to instill higher learning skills in students. They develop the ability to apply knowledge as opposed to just memorizing knowledge- and we all know which is preferable. I also value the core skills that Ensworth promotes; this ties into my previous point in that students must be able to evaluate and apply knowledge in order to truly claim comprehension. Carrie Gauchet' s work will be most valuable in that teachers and students alike will be knowledgable about the goals of the assignment given. Students will gain an appreciation for the various levels of understanding that a person progresses through in order to master science- I believe we must teach science from the observation level up to application. Science becomes less intimidating when students realize it is based on the utilization of senses- qualitatively and quantitatively marking the universe. Ultimately, in a fast paced world the teachers must keep up as well, so we must be prepared to seek out opportunities to expand our knowledge of both current research and classroom technology.