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Marcella

Bachelors, History

Seton Hill University, Purdue University-Main Campus

About Me

Having retired after 30 years as a teacher, I find that I miss my students: teaching them, learning from them, and helping them on their academic journey. I view education as a journey, not a destination such as a test to study for or a paper to prepare. Education is an adventure full of exciting viewpoints, new twists, and solvable 'problems.'In my personal journey, every year I encountered 100 to 105 new viewpoints on every subject imaginable. We didn't just learn English; we explored the world. Our journey in the classroom wasn't limited to papers, grammar, and vocabulary though they were important components. We explored history through our novel readings, debated and wrote essays using primary sources from the Library of Congress, and changed a governor's viewpoint on the environment with a book my students wrote together. Though it never got 'published' in the sense of selling it at a book store, it changed viewpoints and gave students new ideas on the power of writing. Every year brought new twists to my adventure as a teacher and my students' adventure in learning. In reading Charles Dickens' Oliver Twist, we explored child labor from the middle 1800's to the early 1900's. Using primary sources from the Library of Congress, we found children in England working in coal mines and textile mills, children in America toiling in canneries, coal mines, textile mills, and southern fisheries. We examined pictures from The New York Times to figure out what was happening by looking at the details and sharing our thoughts. Students wrote poetry based on their lives, their perspective, and their hopes. We learned empathy and compassion for others by examining the viewpoints of Scout, Jem, and Atticus Finch in To Kill a Mockingbird. We didn't just read and study the book; we immersed ourselves in their shoes. Every year, the students and I encountered countless problems: academic, personal, and social. We learned to problem solve and think positively. We learned there are many ways to approach a 'problem' and even more ways to solve it. We learned from each other. Students have enriched my life. My lifelong journey has been hand in hand with boys and girls from all walks of life, numerous cultural backgrounds, and unique perspectives. I have been their 'student' learning from them, arguing with them, and loving them. Students are our country's lifeblood. Whatever I can do to enhance their journey is a blessing. Please join me in my new adventure with Varsity Tutors! I look forward to what I will learn on my continuing journey.

Education & Certifications

Seton Hill University

Bachelors, History

Purdue University-Main Campus

Masters, American Studies

Q&A with Marcella

My philosophy of teaching centers on the students. All the training, classes, and workshops mean nothing if I am not meeting the needs of the students. In my thirty years of teaching, I learned that to really help each of them, I had to find out their interests, their style of learning, what works for them. I learned to pre-assess before beginning a unit, assess during the unit, and help each one be successful. If the student already knew the material, which I could ascertain by a pretest, why make him/her sit through the same material again? I then planned enrichment or an independent study. My philosophy also involves being an expert in my field. As an English/language arts teacher, I knew the components of this subject area inside out. I learned different strategies to meet the needs of students. I knew who worked well in small groups and who preferred to work alone. I learned to scaffold assignments making them suitable for the ability levels of the students. As a teacher of the gifted, I learned that not all ‘gifted’ are gifted in every subject. I helped the students understand this as well. I never wanted a student to be afraid to ask a question or offer a new idea or way of doing things. Teaching is a balancing act. Meeting the needs of the students while imparting the subject material in an interesting way that is suitable to the learning style of the students is not an easy task. It is challenging, but I found that meeting the needs of my students enhanced their journey and profoundly affected mine. How would you help a student stay motivated? To help a student stay motivated, I praise good work and commend good effort. I try to help the student see learning as part of the journey and there are inevitable ups and downs. If a student has difficulty learning a skill or concept, what would you do?