Name: Marcie T. Hull (School site, Blog, @ecram3)
Organization: Science Leadership Academy
Current title: Technology Coordinator, Art Teacher, Technology Teacher
Selected accolade: Educon co-organizer, Mother to Chase and wife to Steven

 

 

 

What skill(s) do you feel are most important for today’s students to explore in academic settings (tech or non-tech related)?

• risk taking
• learning in front of people
• verbalization of ideas
• knowledge that there is more than one right answer

I call this process “setting students up for failure” – sounds awful, but if kids learn to fail in front of people, especially in a safe place where there is a teacher/ guide, the more they become comfortable with the learning process and going beyond the first idea and the idea that there is one right answer.

 

For a teacher looking to use technology to connect with students, enhance learning or embrace 21st century skills, where do you suggest one begin?

I usually tell teachers to begin with their own lesson plans. They are professionals that have crafted units that are built for learning. Finding tools (not technology – that word is over used and means nothing) that compliment the essential questions  that the teacher hopes students walk away knowing.

 

What is the best part of your job?

I have autonomy in my classroom which allows me to teach in ways that inspire the students and myself.

 

What was your path to your current position?

I started as an art student at Temple’s Tyler School of Art and got a teaching degree while there. With one year left on my certificate, I got a job teaching art at an under-achieving middle school in West Philadelphia. The principal of that school found out that I was able to use computers and when the computer teacher retired she put me into the school lab.

I went on to get my masters to be an Educational Technologist and my K-12 certification in business technology, because one needs a business technology certification to teach technology in Pennsylvania. That school was taken over more than once because of NCLB and finally was made into a Mastery Charter school.

Chris Lehmann hired me to be a founding staff member of the Science Leadership Academy and I have been here ever since. In six years we have started an annual conference called EduCon, I’ve gone to many technology in education conferences. I won the Keystone award for excellent usage of technology in the classroom. I have also done many professional developments and really enjoy sharing the expertise of 6 years at SLA.