MIT Stem Pals
 
  June 2012  
 

How Proud Am I?
From Heidi Rudolph

Dick LarsonAs a career math teacher in a public high school in Ohio, I am proud to say that the Ohio State University is producing fresh, new math and science teachers through its amazing STEM Masters program. As a mother of one particular STEMer, I am even more proud!

Here is some information from the website: “The STEM Master of Education (M.Ed.) teacher preparation program is a full-time or part-time graduate program that takes one or two years to complete. The M.Ed. includes a coherent series of interdisciplinary core courses, content-specific courses, a research and inquiry component, field experiences, a clinical practicum, and a culminating project focused on critical issues in education…The STEM M.Ed. Program is a 41 semester-hour graduate experience that seeks to prepare candidates to earn a Master of Education degree and to qualify for a grade 7-12 mathematics license, a grade 4-12 technology education license, or one of eleven different grade 7-12 science licenses available from the Ohio Department of Education… Candidates enter with a baccalaureate degree and the prerequisite content courses, specific for each content area…M.Ed. students take classes as a cohort… M.Ed. students are placed for field experiences (observation, participation, internship) in schools in fall, and spring semesters for increasingly richer experiences. These placements collectively provide over 700 clock hours in the schools spread over the typical 180-day school calendar. The placements are in public middle and high schools in Franklin County with each student experiencing urban and suburban and middle and high school classrooms.”

Please see http://ehe.osu.edu/edtl/academics/downloads/med-stem.pdf for an overview.

As I reflect upon my own teacher training in undergrad and my eventual Masters degree, I can confidently say that my daughter is more prepared to teach than I ever was. Her program will guarantee an employer of a quality teacher early in her career, and her students will be more engaged because of her ability to blend math and science applications together through careful lesson planning. Her year-long field experience, combined with FEEP (First Education Experience Placement) during her undergrad experience have helped her to gain valuable classroom time with the help and support of her professors, cooperating teachers, fellow students and now a cohort of like-minded young educators. This is a recipe for success! I commend the Ohio State University for creating and further developing a strong program that gives hope for a future full of bright STEM teachers and even brighter Ohio STEM students! Watch out, future world, as Ohio shows how it’s done…

Heidi Rudolph is a math teacher at Orange High School in Cleveland, Ohio.

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