My
approach to professional development is total emersion. I am an academic
precisely because I seek to maximize my potential for lifelong learning.
Thus, in reading the above sections on teaching effectiveness and scholarship,
you have already encountered ample demonstration of Professional Development.
These include the following activities:
1. Post doctoral study. I have already noted my enrollment
in the Doctorant program at VSPU, with Dr. Danielchuk, the rector, as
my mentor. As noted, if completed, I will earn a second dissertation intended
for advanced scholars later in their careers which, in Russia, qualifies
the recipient to a status of advanced or senior full professor. Although
I have moved to America, I intend to complete this research. I discuss
my program of study on comparative education under scholarship. Thus far,
my total involvement in course related work has impeded my formal efforts,
although all the work I do for courses has become data for the study.
2. Conference attendance. Under scholarship, I have noted
already my attendance at a range of conferences where I have also given
papers. These include conferences in the fields of sociology, psychology,
as well as education, and have tended to focus particularly upon the Volgograd
Ecological Gymnasium project. While at these conferences, I attend sessions
of interest and operate in open learning mode. Documentation of these
efforts, when available, is included in the scholarship section.
3. Professional reading. As demonstrated by my syllabi,
I have concentrated much of my time and effort to the study of the literatures
related to my courses. Beyond books, I do prodigious amounts of internet
searching. I believe that the extent of my learning is fully evident from
the course presentations evident in these syllabi.
4.
Meetings with Luminaries. I have nurtured a relationship
with Dr. Jermone Bruner, one of the truly great educational theorists.
In October 2002, I also met with Dr. Charles Schaefer, one of the founders
of play therapy, whose books became very popular in Russia.
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| Meeting
with Jerome Bruner at NYU |
Meeting
with Jerome Bruner at NYU |
Meeting with Dr.
Charles Schaefer at FDU |
5. I have attended events at MSMC including conferences, workshops and
seminars, including all announced Technology workshops at MSMC. These
events include:
a.
Internet Plagiarism;
b . Creating Web Pages;
c . Working with HTML;
d . Faculty workshop on Inquiry. January, 2002 Hudson Hall, MSMC.
6. Faculty Development workshops at Division of Education and college-wide
Workshops on Service Learning, January, 2002, 2003 at MSMC.
7. I receive the Journal Comparative Studies and actively belong to the
Comparative Education Society.
8. Teaching in the Master's Program at the New York Institute of Technology. This program is for teachers who came back to school to become tech savvy instructors and coordinators of technological support in curriculum desgn. For me, this experience offers another avenue for professional development. The opportunity to work with experienced teachers inspires new ideas on innovative teaching and effective instruction and provides insights drawn from personal experience, both my own and from these veteran teacher-students. Everything I design for courses at NYIT, I use later in my MSMC classes.
NYIT Teaching Experience
   
   
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