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About Miss Young

Growing up, I attended CUSD schools and I still remember how much I enjoyed my education and have kept in contact with some of my past teachers. For a fifth grade assignment, I was asked to draw a "Me T-Shirt" depicting what I wanted to be when I "grew up". Without any hesitation, I portrayed myself as a classroom teacher. Ever since that day, I have always known that I wanted to be an elementary school teacher. Now I am finally able to fulfill my dream of being a teacher.

My Philosophy of Education

I believe that every student is entitled to a teacher who is properly trained and whole-heartedly dedicated to the furthering of the student's education and learning experience. It is our job as teachers to prepare our students of today to meet the challenges of tomorrow. My top priority is to instill a love of learning in my students - it is extremely important to their success. It is important to intrinsically motivate my students. Effective teachers are able to make learning relevant and fun for students. In order to make learning fun, I must form strong positive relationships with my students.

Differences must be embraced and diversity valued. Diversity must be effectively integrated into one's class - not just through superficial means such as only celebrating well-known holidays but also through the exploration of different cultures through literature presented in the class, the viewpoints discussed, and other methods of integrating cultural awareness into the content of the lessons.

It is important to foster a learning environment that maximizes students' potential by getting to know the students and finding out their interests, then making the learning relevant. Students are more interested in learning when they can relate their learning to their own lives. As teachers, we must help students have a good attitude toward learning - to help students see a perceived failure as a challenge. School should be a place where students feel safe and want to go every morning.

Technology should be integrated throughout the curriculum. Currently, it is an aspect of the curriculum that is often overlooked by many teachers. However, technology has the potential to intrinsically motivate students' learning. It also has the potential to open doors to students with learning disabilities through its wide range of uses and unique ways of presenting information.

I feel that it is important to always keep learning. Teachers need to stay abreast of current research and new methods to better reach all their students as individuals. It is our responsibility as educators to provide students with the best education possible. I can learn from my students as much as they can learn from me, and it is always worthwhile to spend time learning new things, whether that be in my own classroom or through an adult education program.

Academic & Professional Experience

Currently, I am a Masters student of Elementary Education at San Jose State University, emphasizing in Instructional Technology. My Masters project will involve integrating computers into the classroom through peer training, which will help me achieve my future aspiration of creating a non-profit organization providing free technological services and courses to teachers and students. While taking my Masters classes, I am also working on my Clear Credential and pursuing a Technology in Education Certificate.

In December 2003, I completed my Elementary Education Preliminary Credential at San Jose State University. Prior to that, I received my B.A. at the University of California, Berkeley, majoring in Interdisciplinary Studies with an emphasis in Society and Technology in a Comparative Perspective. My senior thesis topic was about the role of computers in education.

Last semester, I held a long-term substitute position in a 6th grade class at Meyerholz Elementary. In that experience, I had the opportunity to establish classroom norms, expectations, consequences, and rewards. Working in close-collaboration with the other staff members, I gained experience planning the curriculum for the remainder of the school year. My student teaching experiences include students in second, third, and fifth grades at Los Alamitos Elementary School in the San Jose Unified School District and Meyerholz Elementary School in the Cupertino Union School District. I have also served as a classroom volunteer and observer at Collins Elementary School, Portal Elementary School, and Parkview Elementary School.

In the course of my travels, I have had the opportunity to explore sections of five continents, including the countries of: the United States, Mexico, Canada, Bahamas, Costa Rica, Aruba, England, The Netherlands, Belgium, France, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Portugal, Italy, China, Hong Kong, Fiji, and Australia. Several of my favorite places to visit while traveling around the world are the local aquarium and zoo. At those locations, I have learned a lot about the local flora and fauna.

While traveling around the world, I am able to explore the use of photography to capture the essence and wonders of the locale. My favorite photographic images are of animals (especially marine life), sunsets, flowers, and cityscapes. Whenever I return from a trip, I post my photographs online to make them available for perusal by family, friends, and anybody else who may stop by. You can find some samples of my photography at: http://gallery.justmoi.org/GoodPix. In August, two of my photographs were selected to be featured as the KQED Photo of the Day (http://www.kqed.org/topics/local/august04/).

Growing up in the Silicon Valley, I have been exposed to computers my entire life. While my interactions with computers began with mere word processing in text editors, they have grown to include many facets of computers, from hardware to software to the application of computers in our world. One of my favorite past-times includes talking online to friends around the world, learning more about their culture and experiences and noticing how life has many congruencies no matter where you live. In my free time, I also develop web pages relating to my interests (like this one!).

A few years ago, I learned about organizations that provide hairpieces to children suffering long-term medical hair loss. Since that time, I have made three donations to Locks of Love and plan to continue making donations as long as my hair continues to grow. You can find out more about Locks of Love at their website: http://www.locksoflove.org.

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