About Mary Colleen:

My name is Colleen and I entered Rockhurst University as a freshman in August 2006. I graduated in May 2010 with degrees in Elementary Education and Spanish. Growing up near Dallas, texas, I attended a large public high school called Plano Senior High.

My college courses, volunteer work, field experiences, and professional experiences have allowed me to practice teaching different content at many levels, and have affirmed my decision to pursue education as a career. I am a hard-working and dedicated individual. During the past six years, I have helped people of various ages make progress with different subject areas and skills. As a Jesuit Volunteer, I taught Spanish, library, technology, and enrichment at an urban grade school. I currently teach Spanish in an elementary school in Kansas City. I teach adults English in a community ESL program in Raytown, missouri. I have tutored individual middle school and high school students in Spanish, helping them raise their grades and increase their confidence with the language. I have also tutored Spanish-speaking adults to improve their English.

I believe that education improves quality of life and allows people to appreciate the world around them. As a teacher, my goal is to facilitate students’ learning experiences by introducing new information to them in a meaningful context and presenting strategies which they can use for lifelong learning. I feel prepared to draw on my variety of talents and experiences to help meet the individual needs of each learner and guide them to pursue their interests. Specifically, I think that my patience, creativity, and proficiency in the Spanish language will help me teach effectively. Speaking Spanish will allow me to reach an even broader base of learners and parents. Patience will help me manage the classroom calmly and effectively, and will help me persevere until each learner succeeds. Creativity will help me differentiate instruction and react quickly to spontaneous situations. I believe also that while curriculum and standards are important, it is critical that they are implemented in a way that helps learners understand exactly how their classroom activities pertain to the real world.

A former teacher once gave me wise advice that I have adopted as part of my own teaching philosophy: First, genuinely care for your students and make sure they know it. Second, set high expectations and make sure they reach them, even if you have to take extreme measures to help them achieve the goals. I believe that constant reflection on all aspects of my practice as an educator will help me adhere to these words throughout my teaching career. Overall, the basic elements of my philosophy are to ensure equality of education for all, to make learning meaningful, and to demonstrate faith in learners’ abilities to succeed. I believe that these three elements will provide a solid foundation from which I can grow as a teacher.