Northwestern Oklahoma State University played host to seven Alva High School students recently for the high school’s “Teach Oklahoma” course.
Teach Oklahoma was designed to mentor high school students about teaching and provide a fundamental knowledge about the teaching profession in Oklahoma. The course is supported through the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education.
The Alva High School Teach Oklahoma students were greeted on campus by Northwestern teacher candidates. A “Kahoots” contest was held that consisted of the Teach Oklahoma students responding to questions regarding Northwestern’s teacher preparation program and facts about Northwestern. The top three scores from the contest were awarded Northwestern t-shirts. This was followed by a lunch during which the students and Nortwestern teacher candidates engaged in discussion about the teaching profession. Tim Argo, Alva Public Schools superintendent, and Halah Simon, Alva High School language arts educator, joined the participants for lunch.
The seven high school students included Rachel Bratton, Kade Flores, Arek Greve, Isaac Hartle, Delaney Lambert, Tara Owen and Megan Pharis.
This is the first of three events for the Teach Oklahoma students during the 2019-2020 school year all of which are sponsored by a grant the Northwestern Division of Education received from the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education.
Dr. Christee Jenlink, professor of education, chair to the Division of Education and associate dean of the School of Education, understands and believes in the importance of students actively learning and getting hands-on experience especially in the teaching field.
“The Teach Oklahoma program is more critical than ever in light of the teacher shortage not only in Oklahoma but across the nation,” Jenlink said. “The program provides immersive experiences for high school students who are considering a career in teaching. With Northwestern’s history of excellence in teacher preparation, having the Alva students visit the campus to experience the program complements the work that is occurring in the Teach Oklahoma course at Alva High School.”
Northwestern’s teacher education program, which is housed in the Division of Education, is accredited by the National Council for the Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE) and approved by the Commission for Educational Quality and Accountability (CEOA).
For more information about Northwestern’s teaching programs contact Jenlink at (580) 327-8450 or cljenlink@nwosu.edu.
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CONTACT FOR RELEASE
Erin Davis, University Relations Specialist
eedavis@nwosu.edu; 580-327-8480