FOR MANY ENTERING THE
PROFESSION, BEING A TEACHER
MEANS THE OPPORTUNITY TO HELP
CHILDREN REALIZE THEIR

POTENTIAL.
IT CAN BE A REWARDING CAREER,
ESPECIALLY IF YOU GET STARTED ON
THE RIGHT FOOT.

HERE'S A LOOK AT HOW SOME MAKE
THAT TRANSITION FROM STUDENT TO
TEACHER.
THE URBAN TEACHER RESIDENCY

PROGRAM AT THE UNIVERSITY OF
SOUTH FLORIDA COLLEGE OF
EDUCATION TAKES A NEW APPROACH
TO TRAINING FUTURE TEACHERS.

INSTEAD OF THE TRADITIONAL
15-WEEK INTERN PROGRAM, STUDENTS
BECOME TEACHERS ON DAY ONE OF
THIS TWO-YEAR PROGRAM.

WE ARE SO FORTUNATE THAT THIS
PROGRAM REALLY IS A PARTNERSHIP
BETWEEN HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY AND
USF.

AND IT'S THE POWER OF THAT
SYNERGY BETWEEN US THAT REALLY
ALLOWS OUR TEACHER PREPARATION
PROGRAM TO BE SO UNIQUE AND

INNOVATIVE.
SARAH VAN INGEN CODIRECTS THE
PROGRAM WHERE TEACHERS IN
TRAINING GET OVER 2,000 HOURS IN

THE CLASSROOM COMPARED TO 700
HOURS IN A REGULAR INTERNSHIP
PROGRAM.
WE DIDN'T JUST TRIPLE THE

TIME BECAUSE MORE IS NOT
NECESSARILY BETTER.
IT'S A FACT THAT WHAT WE'VE DONE
IS TOTALLY TRANSFORMED HOW WE DO

THE PREPARATION.
SO WHEN STUDENTS ARE IN THEIR
COURSE WORK, WE HAVE REALLY
REDESIGNED THAT COURSE WORK TO

BE EXPLICITLY LINKED TO THEIR
TEACHING.
SO WHEN THEY ARE IN THEIR
CLASSES, UNIVERSITY CLASSES,

WHICH WE ACTUALLY TEACH IN AN
ELEMENTARY SCHOOL BUILDING,
THEY ARE LEARNING ABOUT
TECHNIQUES THAT ARE SHOWN TO BE

VERY EFFECTIVE WITH CHILDREN WHO
ARE DIVERSE LINGUISTICALLY,
SOCIOECONOMICALLY, CULTURALLY.
SO WE'RE TEACHING THEM

STRATEGIES, AND THEN THEY GET
THAT SAME DAY TO GO AND APPLY
THOSE STRATEGIES.
A KEY COMPONENT OF THE

RESIDENCY IS TO PAIR THE STUDENT
TEACHER WITH A COLLABORATING
TEACHER AS AN EXPERT MENTOR.
WHEN YOU HAVE A MASTER MENTOR

TEACHER WHO HAS EFFECTIVELY
NAVIGATED WHAT IT MEANS TO MEET
THE NEEDS OF ALL STUDENTS IN A
CLASSROOM, THEY CAN HELP THAT

NEW TEACHER REALLY THINK THROUGH
THE PROCESS OF MEETING THE NEEDS
OF INDIVIDUAL CHILDREN.
WE DO THINK OF THIS AS A LITTLE

BIT LIKE THE MEDICAL MODEL.
SO LET'S SAY YOU'RE GOING TO GO
HAVE HEART SURGERY.
YOU'RE REALLY HOPING THAT YOUR

HEART SURGEON HAD A LONG TIME
BEING MENTORED BY AN EXPERT
HEART SURGEON, AND WE BELIEVE
THAT'S TRUE IN EDUCATION AS

WELL.
LIKE WITHIN THE FIRST TWO
WEEKS, WE WERE INSIDE OF A
CLASSROOM.

WE WERE REALLY HANDS ON.
THIS IS SAMANTHA HARTMAN WHO
IS JUST COMPLETING HER RESIDENCY
AT MORT ELEMENTARY IN TAMPA.

AFTER TWO YEARS HERE, SHE FEELS
SHE IS BETTER PREPARED FOR HER
FIRST YEAR OF TEACHING.
I KNOW THEY SAY WHEN YOU

GRADUATE YOU'RE IN YOUR FIRST
YEAR OF TEACHING, BUT WHERE I'M
AT RIGHT NOW, I FEEL LIKE I'M
ALMOST IN MY SECOND OR THIRD

YEAR OF TEACHING JUST BECAUSE
I'VE BEEN ABLE TO HAVE THOSE
MOMENTS IN A LESSON WHERE YOU,
LIKE, FALL FLAT ON YOUR FACE,

AND YOU HAVE TO, LIKE, BE SUPER
QUICK IN HOW AM I GOING TO FIX
THIS?
IT'S NICE TO HAVE THAT

EXPERIENCE YOUR FIRST AND SECOND
YEAR OF INTERNSHIP SO THAT YOU
KNOW WHAT TO FIX FOR YOUR FIRST
YEAR OF TEACHING.

HER HANDS-ON EXPERIENCE WAS
ANCHORED BY HER COLLABORATING
TEACHER AND MENTOR.
WE HAVE HAD MOMENTS WHERE WE

JUST CRIED IN FRONT OF HER AND
WE FELT, LIKE, SCARED.
OR WE WERE STRUGGLING WITH
SOMETHING, AND SHE WAS REALLY

LIKE THAT CALM FIGURE THAT WAS
LIKE, DON'T WORRY ABOUT THIS.
EVERYTHING IS GOING TO WORK OUT.
HERE'S WHAT YOU CAN DO.

HERE'S WHERE YOU CAN GO TO FIX
IT.
SAMANTHA JUST GRADUATED FROM
THE PROGRAM, AND HER TRAINING

HAS PAID OFF.
THROUGH THE RESIDENCY,
YOU ARE TAKING MORE LEAVE,
BUT YOU DO STILL HAVE THAT EXTRA

BODY IN THE ROOM OF YOUR
COOPERATING TEACHER.
I AM NERVOUS TO SEE WHAT IT WILL
BE LIKE MY FIRST YEAR JUST ME IN

THE CLASSROOM, BUT I FEEL
CONFIDENT KNOWING THAT WHATEVER
I STRUGGLE WITH I KNOW EXACTLY
WHO I CAN GO TO, AND I FELT

REALLY COMFORTABLE WITH EVERYONE
IN THE SCHOOL.
SO I KNOW WHO I CAN GO TO FOR
HELP.

MORT ELEMENTARY PRINCIPAL
WOODLAND JOHNSON HAS WORKED WITH
THE URBAN RESIDENCY PROGRAM FOR
FOUR YEARS.

WE'RE ABLE TO WORK WITH THEM
EVERY DAY ON GETTING TO KNOW
CHILDREN, TO GETTING TO KNOW
FAMILIES.

BEING ABLE TO SAY AT A
HIGH-NEEDS SCHOOL, WHAT ARE SOME
OF THE ISSUES THAT TEACHERS WILL
HAVE TO ENCOUNTER WHEN THEY COME

INTO THEIR FIRST YEAR OF
TEACHING?
AND SO THIS WAY, OUR RESIDENTS
HAVE HAD TWO YEARS BEING HERE

EVERY DAY TO REALLY GET TO KNOW
THE FAMILIES AND THE COMMUNITY
AND THE NEEDS.
SO THAT THEN WHEN THEY TAKE OVER

THE CLASSROOM, WHEN THEY ARE THE
ONLY TEACHER IN THE CLASSROOM,
THEY HAVE BENEFITED FROM THOSE
OPPORTUNITIES.

DO YOU GUYS THINK YOU COULD
DO THAT?
WE CAN LOOK AT EACH OF OUR
RESIDENTS AND SAY WHERE ARE

THEIR STRENGTHS?
WHERE ARE AREAS THAT WE WANT TO
CONTINUE TO DEVELOP THEM ON?
IS IT CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT?

IS IT INSTRUCTIONAL STRATEGIES?
IS IT DIFFERENTIATION OF
INSTRUCTION?
AND THEN WE'RE ABLE TO REALLY

DIFFERENTIATE SOME OF OUR
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND
WORKING IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE
UNIVERSITY TO MAKE SURE THAT

WE'RE ABLE TO ADDRESS THOSE
NEEDS FOR EACH RESIDENT AND
TRULY GET THEM PREPARED TO GO
INTO EDUCATION.

AND AT THE END OF THE
PROGRAM, NEWLY GRADUATED
TEACHERS ARE READY TO START
THEIR NEW CAREER ON DAY ONE.

THE NICE THING FOR ME IS THAT
AT THE END OF THEIR SECOND YEAR,
I HAVE HAD TWO YEARS TO REALLY
WORK AND DEVELOP THEM.

SO IF I DO HAVE OPENINGS AT OUR
SCHOOL, I AM ABLE TO HIRE THEM.
THIS YEAR I HAVE BEEN ABLE TO
OFFER JOBS TO THREE OF THE

RESIDENTS THAT WE HAD.
SAMANTHA IS ONE OF THOSE NEW
HIRES AND IS READY TO START.
TODAY SHE'S WORKING WITH

SARA WORNER WHO GRADUATED FROM
THE PROGRAM TWO YEARS AGO.
SARA WAS ABLE TO MAKE THE
TRANSITION TO TEACHING IN AN

URBAN SCHOOL WITH FEW GLITCHES.
THE WHOLE THING ABOUT THE
RESIDENCY PROGRAM WAS IT WAS
DIRECTLY -- WE WERE ALL IN TITLE

I SCHOOLS SO THEY DIRECTLY GAVE
US STRATEGIES OF TEACHING WITH
POVERTY IN MIND, STRATEGIES
SPECIFICALLY GEARED TOWARDS THE

STUDENTS WE WERE TEACHING.
IF YOU'RE UP FOR A CHALLENGE,
IT'S WORTH IT IN THE END.
THE STUDENTS MAKE IT WORTH IT.

IT IS A STRUGGLE, BUT WHEN YOU
SEE THAT FINALLY IT CLICKS, YOU
SEE THEM FINALLY LEARN, THE
SMILES ON THEIR FACE WHEN YOU

SEE THAT LIGHT IN THEIR HEAD GO
ON, THAT'S WHAT MAKES IT WORTH
IT.
WHAT WAS ONE OF THE CRAZY

THEORIES THEY HAD IN THE
ARTICLE?
I THINK EACH ONE OF US
INVOLVED IN THE PROGRAM KNOW

WE'RE A PART OF SOMETHING
UNIQUE, THAT'S A
ONCE-IN-A-LIFETIME OPPORTUNITY
TO BE AT THE CUTTING EDGE OF OUR

FIELD AND MAKING A DIFFERENCE IN
EDUCATION.
ONE OF THE GOALS OF THE URBAN
RESIDENCY PROGRAM IS TO MEET THE

NEEDS OF THE ELEMENTARY STUDENT,
WHATEVER HIS OR HER CHALLENGE
IS.
ALL CHILDREN ARE BORN WITH AN

INCREDIBLE WEALTH OF BRILLIANCE
AND KNOWLEDGE AND ABILITY.
AND WE ARE ALL ABOUT RECOGNIZING
THAT, BUT ABOUT TRAINING THE

EDUCATOR TO RECOGNIZE THE
ENVIRONMENT, TO SEE THE
CIRCUMSTANCES, TO WORK WITH
THOSE CIRCUMSTANCES, TO DRAW OUT

THEIR TALENTS, THEIR GIFTS,
THEIR ABILITIES.
BECAUSE IT'S SUCH AN AREA OF
HIGH NEED, THIS IS OUR MISSION

TO DEVELOP EDUCATORS, AND WE ARE
BEING SUCCESSFUL AT IT, WHICH IS
REALLY EXCITING.

HELIOS EDUCATION FOUNDATION,
A PROUD SUPPORTER OF EDUCATIONAL
PROGRAMS ON WEDU, IS PROUD

TO SUPPORT WEDU QUEST.
YOU CAN LEARN MORE
AT HELIOS.ORG