Golden Apple winners share experiences, advice with NEIU students
Sabrina Gasulla
Issue date: 4/28/09 Section: News
On Tuesday, April 21, five of this year's Golden Apple Award winners got together at NEIU to talk about what inspires them as educators and share some advice with NEIU students. All five winners are NEIU graduates from the College of Education.
The Golden Apple Awards for Excellence in Teaching were created in 1985, by Mike Koldyke, who decided outstanding teachers should be honored and recognized for their contribution to society. Ever since, the awards are given to 10 teachers out of hundreds of nominees every year.
The first presenter, Brooke Tippet-Thompson, is the music and choir teacher at Helen C. Pierce School of International Studies in Chicago.
Tippet-Thompson talked about her teaching philosophy, which is based on three points: the importance of play in education, relating abstract subjects to things kids already know and the negative consequences of empty praise. On this last point she said, "We throw 'good jobs' left and right and they don't mean anything anymore." She went on saying that children respond to honesty as well as challenges from their teachers.
She made the very significant distinction between "training students vs. teaching students", pointing out that too many students today get through their classes by sheer memorization and therefore take very little away from the classroom.
Tippet-Thompson said she approaches teaching music as if it was a foreign language and the response from students is outstanding. Not only do they actively participate and enjoy her classes, they are also encouraged to do well in other subjects.
Tippet-Thompson was followed by Carol Broos who teaches music and theater at Sunset Ridge School in Northfield.
Her presentation focused on current developments in education thanks to the Internet. Her first piece of advice was to "clean up your Facebook page." It is becoming more and more common for employers to check online profiles instead of references, and Broos is a firm believer that privacy on Facebook or MySpace is a myth.
The Golden Apple Awards for Excellence in Teaching were created in 1985, by Mike Koldyke, who decided outstanding teachers should be honored and recognized for their contribution to society. Ever since, the awards are given to 10 teachers out of hundreds of nominees every year.
The first presenter, Brooke Tippet-Thompson, is the music and choir teacher at Helen C. Pierce School of International Studies in Chicago.
Tippet-Thompson talked about her teaching philosophy, which is based on three points: the importance of play in education, relating abstract subjects to things kids already know and the negative consequences of empty praise. On this last point she said, "We throw 'good jobs' left and right and they don't mean anything anymore." She went on saying that children respond to honesty as well as challenges from their teachers.
She made the very significant distinction between "training students vs. teaching students", pointing out that too many students today get through their classes by sheer memorization and therefore take very little away from the classroom.
Tippet-Thompson said she approaches teaching music as if it was a foreign language and the response from students is outstanding. Not only do they actively participate and enjoy her classes, they are also encouraged to do well in other subjects.
Tippet-Thompson was followed by Carol Broos who teaches music and theater at Sunset Ridge School in Northfield.
Her presentation focused on current developments in education thanks to the Internet. Her first piece of advice was to "clean up your Facebook page." It is becoming more and more common for employers to check online profiles instead of references, and Broos is a firm believer that privacy on Facebook or MySpace is a myth.
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