CJ. Cahill

Describe your current teaching assignment:

Brooke Point is a traditional public high school within Stafford County, Virginia. The high school's students come from a varying degree of socioeconomic backgrounds and the school is consistently growing in its population of English language learners. I will be beginning my third year teaching in the fall and have taught biology, ecology, and anatomy and physiology.

 

How did the Noyce program prepare you for this assignment?

Noyce helped prepare me for this assignment by teaching me ways to incorporate student backgrounds and experiences into the classroom to ensure all students remain engaged.

 

How did the Noyce program at William and Mary prepare you to use teaching strategies that can help all students learn in all settings?

Noyce instilled the belief that all students can learn regardless of backgrounds when provided opportunities in the classroom that provide relevance to their lives.

 

How do you use what you've learned?

I use the skills I learned from the Noyce program to ensure students feel relevance with course content through real world experiences. By writing letters about pollution to local officials, by testing water quality at local water ways, by researching recent medical discoveries, or any by performing any other performance based tasks, my students gain a real a world perspective that goes beyond a paper and pencil test.

 

In addition to teaching, are you exploring new areas in content, teaching strategies, leadership, etc.? If so, what areas and did the Noyce experience play a role?

I have been pursuing additional education to aid English language learners in the classroom as well as to develop as an educational leader. The Noyce experience taught me how valuable additional education is when attempting to reach the needs of all students.

 

Describe any highlights/special achievements during these beginning years of teaching:

In my first year teaching I received the first-year teacher of the year award at my school. After my first semester teaching I began a TESOL certificate program at The George Washington University that I will complete in May 2020. In addition, I was accepted as a member of the SCPS cohort for an MEd. in instructional leadership from William & Mary to be completed summer 2021.

 

What has the Noyce program meant to you?

Noyce has provided me with a forum to constantly connect and reflect with highly skilled educators from varying school sites. This strong sense of community provides me with the support and confidence to consistently strive to better myself as an educator.