By Maegan Murray, ���سԹ�

RICHLAND, Wash. – Veronica Romero had plans to walk with her peers at the Washington State University Tri-Cities commencement this spring. But like many others, those plans are postponed.

Like thousands of college students across the country, she also transitioned to online learning and had to forego the in-person classroom experiences that she enjoys as a future teacher.

But she didn’t let those things phase her. Have there been challenges? Sure. Does she miss the face-to-face interactions with her professors and peers? Definitely. But with the challenges, she said, have come many opportunities.

Growing knowledge of educational technology

As a future teacher, Romero has used the time to become a full-time teacher a bit earlier than planned. The young single mom of two is teaching her own kids at home while completing the rest of her classes online, a time that she truly cherishes. And she has used the move to online learning to brush up on educational tools and technology that are sure to be the future of K-12 education, or at least important components.

“It has been a bit of a difficult transition because the ���سԹ� education program is normally really hands-on, people-focused and student centered,” she said. “But with the transition to distance learning, we are also encouraged to rely on our own technology and use that technology for good.”

As educational technology is a growing field, she said the switch to online learning has helped educate her and her peers on what many teachers will use in the future. She said they rely on different platforms for learning, including videos, interactive media and collaborating more on Zoom breakout sessions.

“It has been hard stepping away from student-centered, hands-on learning, but it’s also been an opportunity to grow our knowledge in these ed tech tools and resources,” she said.

Why education?

Romero said her fifth-grade teacher Jean Kilian and high school leadership teacher Dave Martinez originally inspired her to go into a career in education. Once she began her job as a paraeducator, she was further inspired by MaryBeth Zins, a teacher she worked with that made the classroom “magical” for students.

“I thought, ‘Wow, I want to do that,’ ” she said.

She started looking at education programs and found ���سԹ� to be a good fit. She initially started out in the alternate route program, which provides paraeducators the opportunity to combine their proven classroom experiences with courses where they earn a bachelor’s in education with an English language learning or special education endorsement in two years.

While she loved the program, she missed the immersive full-time student experience. So she transitioned out of the alternate route program and into the traditional education bachelor’s program at ���سԹ�, pursuing her bachelor’s with an endorsement in English language learning.

“It was difficult because I had to step away from being a provider first and from evening classes to being a full-time student, but it was the best decision for me as a teacher and as a student,” she said. “Much more room for making connections.”

Romero said she particularly enjoys the focus that the ���سԹ� College of Education and her professors place on diversity, cultural awareness and teaching with cultural relevancy.

“When I was going through school, there wasn’t as much awareness about Spanish-speaking students and there was a gap because there wasn’t really culturally-relevant teaching,” she said. “WSU’s education program really focuses on whole student-driven education and the diversity in our communities, especially in central and eastern Washington and making it equitable. They are really forward thinking. There is a focus on research and bridging those gaps that we now know exist.”

Parent-teacher

Since the transition to online instruction this spring, Romero has enjoyed bringing those practices into her home when teaching her kids full-time while completing her semester online. She said she regularly utilizes strategies and practices with her kids that she is currently learning about through her classes.

“It’s cool because while my daughter works on her homework, I get to share what I’m learning as a teacher first-hand,” she said. “My daughter is also really into social issues, even at 10 years old. I get to bring home my class material from my political science class and share that with her. It’s been really fun and she really enjoys it.”

Romero’s kids have also noticed a difference in learning styles and have grown to have a new respect for their regular public school teachers. She said her kids see the day-to-day prep that goes into preparing for lessons and observes her teaching strategies in action.

“They have a different appreciation for their teachers,” she said.

Future is bright

Romero now has one semester left before finishing her education degree, but said she can’t wait to begin her life as a full-time teacher locally in either her hometown of Sunnyside or somewhere else regionally in the mid-Columbia area in Washington state.

“I currently substitute teach in Sunnyside and I have a really great connection with the community that we serve, but I’m also open to serving the community wherever there is a need,” she said.

Romero said she plans to put the culturally-relevant teaching practices she has gained through the ���سԹ� College of Education to good use. She plans to use the leadership skills she gained through WSU for preparing the region’s future leaders as a teacher. Additionally, she plans to pursue her master’s degree in education.

“I have always wanted to be a Coug,” she said. “Cougs lead the way, and that is what I will take away from WSU as a whole – it’s that WSU culture of leading. Specifically what I have taken from the education program, is what it is to be a leader and continue innovating in the way that we teach, the way that we communicate and the way that we connect and collaborate. You should strive to be a positive agent for change in society, and especially in the education system as a teacher.”

Romero was one of several thousand graduating students from WSU across the state to participate in the first-ever WSU systemwide graduation celebration.

 

Media contacts:

Veronica Romero, ���سԹ� education student and graduating senior, veronica.romero@wsu.edu

Maegan Murray, ���سԹ� public relations/communication coordinator, 619-403-3617 (cell), maegan_murray@wsu.edu

By C. Brandon Chapman, College of Education

As the novel coronavirus has required a heavy reliance on technology and access to online learning, educators at Washington State University Tri-Cities are encouraging K-12 students and their families to head the other direction, with a new series of low-tech teaching tips.

Each tip is printed on a flyer that also bears the message: “The little moments that make a big impact.” The flyers are designed as a quick resource for families in their role as educators to their homebound children.

Even the delivery mechanism is low-tech: school lunches. The flyers are given to local schools that then have the option of handing them out with the school lunch program.

These teaching tips include things like how to ask better questions of your child to elicit more meaningful conversation.

“The big idea of ‘ask, don’t tell’ reminds me, every day, to ask questions about my son’s thinking,” said John Mancinelli, executive director of Educational Outreach and Partnerships at ���سԹ�. “During our talks, it was clear that my son was less eager to hear what I thought as much as he wanted to share his thoughts.”

One flyer, meant for grades K-3, is called “wonderings” and encourages kids and families to just take a walk around the neighborhood or local park, having the child choose 4-5 small items from the natural world, such as rocks, plants, flowers, etc. After the walk, the child can look at each item carefully and come up with things that they “wonder about” with each. They then try to come up with answers.

“Through this activity, the child and family are modeling true science: asking questions and finding answers,” said Judy Morrison, associate professor of science education.

Another flyer for grades 3-5, focuses on the moon and its path, having kids draw the moon and other objects, such as a roof or light post. The child does this every night at the same time, and after 3-4 nights of the activity, they use the following night to draw where they predict the moon will be, based on past observations. Then they see how closely they were able to predict. Once again, science modeling.

“There’s a lot more to education right now than simply logging in, seeing what online assignments are required, then doing them,” Morrison said.

It’s also a matter of equity, since currently, there is often an assumption that all students have access to the internet and the technology used to watch video lessons. ���سԹ� faculty said they hope to remind people that learning isn’t limited to technology.

As an example, Morrison said that many of the helpful tips and tricks for learning are based on materials and activities commonly found at home.  It can also be as simple as parents finding a quiet place in the house to study or do homework.

“We know that not every child has that option; not every learning environment is the same” she said. “But we need to recognize that we often unintentionally assume that all children have those same benefits.”

Even when households have all the benefits of technology, Mancinelli said it’s not always realistic to expect that things will work smoothly. There can easily be technical and logistical issues.

“Some families have four or more people online at one time, making access to technology and the internet difficult,” he said. “Then, when you consider families that don’t have the technology or the internet, the problem is compounded. These teaching tips are meant to address the problems of the new learning environment.”

At this point, Mancinelli said there’s no way of knowing how many flyers have been distributed. It’s just too early to know. But he said that all contacts thus far have been supportive, which isn’t surprising based on current relationships.

“Our faculty are always highly engaged with the regional school districts, teachers, and the general public,” he said. “Many serve on district and parent committees and offer their professional services regularly.”

Each teaching tip flyer has photos and names of all faculty members in ���سԹ�’ College of Education. And for good cause.

“Our pictures remind folks that we are here and a resource,” Mancinelli said, “and since we have our names on Teaching Tips, they can connect names and faces.”

In addition to school lunches, all the tips .