St. Andrew's Faculty Members Train 150 Teachers

Teaching All Kinds of Minds (TAKOM) provides teachers with a common language around the science of learning. Glenn Whitman, Director of the Center for Transformative Teaching and Learning and St. Andrew’s Dean of Studies, believes that St. Andrew’s faculty have made significant enhancements in the areas of final exams, grading practices and student feedback since first training in TAKOM.

 

“There are clear dots that can be connected between each faculty member training in Teaching All Kinds of Minds and what they have been doing differently as teachers, coaches, and advisors for their students,” he said.

 

English teacher Susheela Robinson has been a facilitator for six years but said teaching TAKOM to 150 teachers at Breck was particularly inspiring.

 

“The energy and enthusiasm of the Breck teachers was exciting, and the opportunity to work with the whole school at one time was a first,” she said. “A group this big has never been taught, so this was a great moment.”

 

Science teacher Phyllis Robinson, who has previously facilitated TAKOM training at St. Andrew’s, said she enjoys witnessing the transformation that teachers experience.

 

“I really enjoy seeing the growth in their own minds, when they say, ‘This makes sense, and here is how I can apply it in my class,’” she said. “That’s super exciting for me because I went through the same journey.”

 

Math teacher Molly Magner said facilitating at Breck gave her a chance to reflect on how St. Andrew’s has evolved in its pedagogy over the past five years.

 

“(Breck is) where we were five years ago,” Magner said. “It was really helpful to have lived this for five years and use our stories to talk to another school. I felt really prepared by St. Andrew’s to do that work.”

 

Before traveling to Minnesota, Magner, English teacher Julia Dean and Spanish teacher Lorraine Martinez Hanley became certified facilitators during an academy led by Michele Robinson, a leader in TAKOM development and implementation.

 

Dean said she decided to become a facilitator because she wanted to “pay it forward” after seeing how the framework has benefitted her teaching.

 

“It’s really inspired and guided my teaching philosophy,” she said. “I wanted to give that same framework to other people and be part of leading other people through that journey.”

 

Martinez Hanley said becoming a certified facilitator was a “dream come true” and a “next step” after more than a decade of practicing and promoting TAKOM.

 

“I really like (TAKOM) because it doesn’t focus on the deficit – it focuses me on who a student is and how you can use the strengths they have to help them with some of the areas they may be challenged in,” she said.

 

Now that they’re back at St. Andrew’s, the faculty facilitators are committed to re-energizing their colleagues around the framework. Ideas include organizing coffee conversations inspired by TAKOM focus areas.

 

“Going (to the academy) with Julia and Molly created a cohort among us to really push each other to continue to elevate our practice,” Martinez Hanley said. “It’s not just about knowing it, but also encouraging others to keep implementing it in their daily practice.”

To learn more about the CTTL and how it impacts St. Andrew’s Episcopal School academics, click here.