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Teacher ePortfolio 2012 Social Studies

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Teacher ePortfolio2012

Social Studies

1. Introduction2. Positive Learning Environment3. Communication4. Collaboration5. Planning6. Assessment7. Methods8. Content Knowledge and Presentation9. Sample of Student Work10. Sample of Student Work (cont.)11. Extracurricular Activities12. Teachers as Scholars and Teachers as People

Joseph Anthony Perna 8 Gilbert PlaceWest Orange, NJ 07052Cell: (973)-518-1266 Home: (973)-325-3027

Secondary Education – Social Studies (K-12)

Resume

Philosophy of Education

Classroom Management: It is important to stay proactive by recognizing problems in the classroom before they develop. This may involve taking simple measures like moving closer to students who are prone to behavioral problems or confronting them in private. This reinforces to students that the teacher is aware and in control of the classroom.

Broad Participation and Actively Engaging Learners: Teachers should encourage broad student participation and provide positive feedback for meaningful student contributions. Their enthusiasm and passion for the subject need be contagious.

“There was no behavioral issue at all and the class was conducted in a way that virtually all the proposed lesson plan was covered without rushing.” – Bernard Flashberg, Supervisor

“A good cross section of the class was contributing to the discussion…Non-volunteers are called upon often.” – Bernard Flashberg, Supervisor

Teacher Students

Teachers become better communicators when they repeat directions, speak clearly and at a good pace, use oral and visual instructions, summarize what is most important, and change vocal tone for emphasis. Students are far more likely to succeed in school when their tasks are clearly communicated with them.Communication in the 21st century classroom: Technology in the form of email, Power School Gradebook, and EDMODO facilitated my communication with colleagues, students, and parents. At times it proved an excellent supplement to communication in the classroom.

Effective collaboration requires a steadfast commitment of ongoing professional learning. It requires strong communication and interpersonal skills with co-workers. It also requires humility in recognizing that there is a lot to learn from colleagues. An open mind is necessary to create a strong rapport with co-workers that leads to effective collaboration.

During my student teaching experience, I demonstrated the ability to effectively collaborate with both of my cooperating teachers and numerous teachers in the Social Studies department. We frequently exchanged ideas and one teacher generously provided me with WWII artifacts from the Battle of Stalingrad that helped make WWII “come alive” for students.

“We immediately appreciated (Joe’s) straight forwardness and that when he has a question or concern he does not hesitate to approach one of us. He truly wants to be the best that he can be.” – Douglass Drabik and Tracey Reynolds, Cooperating Teachers

“The ‘Deliberation in Democracy’ style compelled the students to give great thought to this issue from three perspectives: support, opposition, and their own.” – Bernard Flashberg, Supervisor

“Each group had Dr. Seuss cartoons that appropriately focused on specific themes, such as racism, isolationism, and the evils of Nazism.” – Bernard Flashberg, Supervisor

Lesson Plan: March 14, 2012 – “Analysis of Dr. Seuss’ WWII Political Cartoons” - The lesson involved much planning since it incorporated sixteen of Dr. Seuss’ political cartoons in the era leading up to, and including, World War II. I had to find over sixteen political cartoons that reflected important themes that students discovered through group-based inquiry such as isolationism, internationalism, threat of Nazi Germany, threat of Imperial Japan, and racism.

Lesson Plan: March 30, 2012 – “Deliberation in Democracy on the atomic bombing of Japan” – This lesson involved much planning since it required providing students with necessary background information, arguments supporting the use of the atomic bombing of Japan, arguments opposing it, and a thorough explanation of the deliberation and formal debate process to students. There was much background reading for students that I personally wrote and compiled for them.

Types of Assessment Issued:

- Quizzes - Notebook Check-Exit Card, - Observation -Group Work - Projects -Worksheets - Essays- Verbal Questioning

Assessments are a necessary tool to gauge student progress and evaluate pedagogical proficiency. Each effective lesson calls for some form of assessment.

“The ‘Exit Card’ served as a good review: ‘How has the distribution of modern propaganda changed and stayed the same since WWII?’” – Bernard Flashberg, Supervisor Assessment must challenge

students within reason and foster growth and improvement during each unit. In my Teacher Work Sample, I issued a unit pre-assessment that helped me gauge student abilities to more effectively format the goals and objectives of the unit I taught on genocide.

- Cooperative Learning Role Play - In groups students role played as one of the Allied nations just prior to WWII. They worked together to determine rational policy options to curtail Hitler’s aggression. They then compared their decisions to what the country actually did and assessed the policy of appeasement.

- Conceptual Continuum - Here students accurately placed events of the Cold War in a conceptual continuum timeline of U.S. – Soviet Diplomatic relations. The conceptual continuum included the diplomatic policies of war, cold war, peaceful coexistence, and alliance. This helped students extract important themes from the content.

“Students were not just informed of a group of facts. Rather they were asked to determine how these facts fit within the conceptual framework. This was a higher order thinking exercise.” – Bernard Flashberg, Supervisor

War

Cold War

Peaceful Coexistence

Alliance

1940-1944

1945-1949

1950-1954

1955-1959

1960-1964

U.S. – Soviet Diplomatic Relations(ca. 1940-1964)

It is imperative that a teacher’s content knowledge spans beyond the textbook. This additional knowledge allows a teacher to field student questions and supplement their lessons. The appeal of any lesson is raised when a teacher incorporates historical artifacts, primary sources interesting facts, personal stories, and higher level questions. “Joe was very impressive in his knowledge. The comments he made in class and answers given to me after class attest to this level of knowledge.” – Bernard Flashberg, Supervisor

Students were frequently encouraged to conceptualize what they learned through a thematic approach. As often as possible historical artifacts were used in the classroom ranging from stock sheets, WWII helmets, and Korean War uniforms. Primary source analysis came from an array of notable individuals and thinkers like Mahatma Gandhi, Mao Zedong, Friedrich Nietzsche, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and more.

Samples of Student Work

Samples of Student Work (Continued)

“Treat every player the way you would your son/daughter. Coach everyone, not just the stars” - Anonymous.

CoachingMy coaching experience for the West Orange Junior Varsity baseball team has been extremely lucrative. I have learned important tips about coaching, developed positive relations with players, and have managed to balance a full-time schedule teaching and coaching. The notable improvement of players over the season alone has made the endeavor very enriching.

Intergenerational Personal History Project

I accompanied students on several trips to the Daughters of Israel nursing facility in West Orange, New Jersey. This was a wonderful program where students met and interviewed seniors and completed a personal history of their lives.

Teachers as Scholars

Honors Senior Thesis: Is nationalism a uniquely modern phenomenon? This paper focuses on whether or not the Donatist Church, traditionally interpreted as an ancient religious movement of the Late Antiquity, was primarily pioneered by African nationalism.

This paper was awarded the George Reilly Prize for the best history paper at Seton Hall University for the 2011-2012 school year.

Education Final Paper: What is the place of religion in the social studies classroom? This paper focuses on how religion can be appropriately taught to enrich the curriculum and promote student toleration and respect for the different religions of the world.

Teachers as People