Alumni and Careers

Why Education?

I grew up in Richardson, TX, a city north of Dallas, and attended a public school that I started walking to with my friends when I was in second grade. 这是一所融入社区的学校，拥有充足的资源和友好的员工. Around 3^rd 到了年级，我父母开始说要把我送进私立学校. When I asked them why, 他们解释说，这所学校强调标准化考试, mandated by the state of Texas, was diluting my education—when I complete assignments early I filed paperwork and stapled handouts for teachers, 在免费阅读时间里，我经常被要求和有困难的学生一起阅读. 而我否认他们对我所热爱的小学的批评, 我不禁注意到课堂上到处都是错误和缺陷. 最后我去了一所私立学校, co-ed school in Dallas, their comments and my vicarious experience of public school from my childhood friends inspired me to think critically about education: Why do some students get a better education than others? 你如何量化学生的成功? 批判性思维是什么样子的?

During my first year at Bowdoin, I decided to take Contemporary American Education in hope for some answers to these tough questions. However, 经过几周密集的课程阅读和活跃的讨论, 我发现自己的问题比答案还多! I quickly discovered the layers of complexity that lie beneath the surface of American education and was enthralled by the systems of inequality, 这给公共教育带来了挑战, as well as the hard work of teachers and schools that point towards the promise that lies within schools. The following semester, I enrolled in Educating All Students and spent 4 hours a week working with a middle school student at Brunswick Junior High. A bright-eyed, seventh grade girl, 她体现了我们在课堂上读到和讨论的二分法和挑战. My relationship with her enriched and complicated my understanding of how middle schoolers learn and view themselves in the classroom.

我已经学了几个学期了, 我的一位教授鼓励我在教育领域进行暑期实习. With her support and counsel, I spent the summer before my junior year working as an Education Policy Research Intern at the Children’s Defense Fund in Washington D.C. During my internship, 我参加了国会山的听证会, 为儿童早期教育立法进行游说, 并研究了有关学校公平的重要问题. 我的研究主要集中在学校纪律的不均衡上, disparities in school funding, 以及共同核心对贫困儿童和有色人种儿童的影响. This experience served as the perfect springboard into Doris Santoro’s Urban Education course, in which I’m currently enrolled.

虽然我不知道未来会怎样，但我知道它一定会以某种方式触及教育. 我希望教书，从事教育政策方面的工作，或者在学校做一名社会工作者. 虽然学校不足以解决系统性的不平等，但它们是必要的. 通过我的课程作业和与教育学教授的对话, 我是来了解美国的教育状况的.S. 看起来像，以及想象它是什么 could be.

Why Education?

Prior to Bowdoin, my education experience consisted only of my rural schooling in western Wyoming. To me, my small, homogeneous local school was representative of most schools in the United States. 这是我所知道的唯一一件事，所以我从未质疑过. 我在买球平台大学一年级的秋天，在1101教育课程的第一天, 我至少接触了五种其他类型的学校经历, and I was hooked. 从那以后，每节课我都带着新的观点、想法和问题离开. It was those lingering questions that kept me going back and fueling my curiosity for the American education system.

The following year, 我选了教育2203(教育全体学生), 这让我有机会观察并成为五年级课堂的一部分. 正是在那里，我第一次看到理论被付诸实践. Since then, 我有很好的机会选修教育2265(利用环境进行教育), 教育3325(教育中的正念), and finally Teaching and Learning and Curriculum (Education 3301/3302)—all of which have furthered my desire and passion to teach with their time spent in schools, engaging discussions, 为未来的教育做准备. Each class has been unique, 但每一次都对我作为一个学习者和未来的老师的整体形成做出了贡献. 我特别重视课堂上与当地学校的互动, as it provides a unique opportunity to witness different teaching and learning techniques and build close connections with the Maine community.

The capstone of my experience in education at Bowdoin has come through my time in Teaching Learning and Curriculum (Education 3301/3302). 在过去的一个学期里，我花了40多个小时在8^th 作为年级社会学科课堂的积极观察者和参与者. The excitement I get each morning as I navigate through the bustling hallways and into the challenge of teaching in the classroom is something I can’t shake.

My time in my education classes at Bowdoin has inspired me to pursue education in other forms as well. 大三的秋季学期，我在阿根廷门多萨留学. While there, I worked as an English tutor in a trilingual school (Spanish, Italian, and English). I was grateful to have the confidence and knowledge that I gained from my education courses to be able to teach in this situation, 我把这段经历带回家，并加以扩展，从中收获良多.

在过去的四年里，我接触到的教育经历远远超出了我在缅因州的经历, the United States, and beyond. I am not sure where my education path will take me next as I prepare to graduate in the spring, but I go with the guidance and preparation that has been given to me by all the amazing professors of the Education department. I know that I will keep asking questions as we work toward the answers of education in our country today, and I can’t wait!

More About Mollie

莫丽决定进入斯坦福医学院学习, but deferred enrollment for one year to serve as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant in Madrid, Spain, so that she could pursue her interest in Spanish language and culture and gain exposure to a universal healthcare system. The Fulbright experience strengthened her desire to integrate Spanish and medicine while also fostering an appreciation for the power of international collaboration. In medical school, Mollie has taken multiple Medical Spanish elective courses and utilized Spanish language skills to communicate with Hispanic patients at Stanford free clinics. Mollie研究了Dr. 通过霍华德·休斯医学研究所的奖学金在斯坦福大学的实验室进行研究, 他是奈特-亨尼西奖学金的首届学生. 还有奈特-亨尼西奖学金, 莫丽将攻读斯坦福大学发育生物学项目的博士学位, 并将获得斯坦福大学的医学博士学位. and The liberal arts education and thoughtful mentorship that Mollie received at Bowdoin enabled her to achieve the enriching experiences that have informed her decision to pursue a career in academic medicine, 协同基础科学研究, 治疗服务不足的西班牙裔社区.

More About Sasha

Between Bowdoin and Texas A&M, Sasha worked in a pharmacy to gain experience and to decide whether or not pharmacy was the career for me, 还教过Kaplan PCAT课程. The year she spent gaining pharmacy experience helped solidify her decision to pursue a career in pharmacy. 萨沙在德克萨斯州的一个地区长大，那里缺乏医疗保健, 她决定去德州体育学院&M because of the school’s mission and strong commitment to helping increase access to health care in the South Texas region. The pharmacy program at Texas A&M为Sasha打开了很多扇门, including the amazing opportunity to intern at the Mayo Clinic after her second year of pharmacy school.

Sasha says she would not be where she is today if not for Seth Ramus and Bowdoin Health Professions Advising. 她很感激办公室提供的信息, encouragement, and guidance before, during, 在完成药学院的申请程序之后.