MS
Michael Stradford
  • Bellflower, MO

Michael Stradford participates in WWU teaching demonstration with second-grade students

2012 Jan 13

Second-grade students from Jefferson City, Mo., recently helped William Woods University elementary education majors learn more about classroom teaching. Michael Stradford of Bellflower, Mo., was one of the WWU students participating.

Coming to Fulton from West Elementary School in Jefferson City, Mo., 21 children assisted their teacher in providing a teaching demonstration in the university's model classroom.

Shannon Barnard, their teacher and a WWU alumna, led the demonstration, giving two 45-minute lessons about gravity. A 2008 graduate with a Bachelor of Science degree in elementary education, Barnard is currently enrolled in WWU's Master of Education (M.Ed.) degree program.

"I loved watching the college kids and second-graders work together on the different science projects," Barnard said. "It gave my second-graders a chance to shine and show off what they understood, and it gave the college students a chance to watch and learn ways to guide the students when they were having trouble completing a task."

WWU pre-service teachers-those who have not yet started their student teaching- learned about technology integration, cooperative learning activities, reading time, hands-on learning activities and classroom management.

Barnard showed the WWU students how to integrate technology into the classroom and various ways to transition between subjects and activities.

"Having our own graduates come back to provide demonstrations says a lot about the quality of our program," said Dr. Roger Wen, associate professor of education and business, "Shannon is an excellent teacher at a very young age."

The 16 pre-service teachers were responsible for providing small group activities to supplement the other exercises.

"The pre-service teachers were all prepared for their lessons and all did such a wonderful job interacting with my students," Barnard said. "When kids are engaged and having fun they don't even realize that they are learning. That is one of the best parts of teaching."

She added, "I think it is so important for the pre-service teachers to get to do hands-on activities with kids so they can get a feel for what it is like in a classroom. Anyone can type up a lesson plan, but teaching it to students can be totally different."

Wen explained why he set up the demonstration program: "Real life teaching is not easy to arrange for our students, and the more experience to observe the actual teaching will benefit pre-service teachers in the long run."

This is the second time William Woods has hosted a full-day teaching demonstration. Previously, Kimberly Euliss, who earned her M.Ed. from WWU, brought her students from Columbia Public Schools.

"It is my intention to continue to invite more exceptional teachers with their students to our model classroom for more teaching demonstrations," said Wen.

He added that other education faculty members invite children from surrounding elementary schools to participate in an annual math fair.

While on campus, the West Elementary students ate lunch with college students at Tucker Dining Hall and took a small tour of campus led by William Woods students.

"The trip to William Woods is one that my students and I will never forget," said Barnard. "It was one of the best learning experiences for my students and the pre-service teachers."