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"My view on charter schools has completely changed"
December 05, 2023
Throughout the Fall 2023 semester, Grace Morris and Claire Marshall, aspiring teachers enrolled at GVSU, dedicated their mornings to guiding 2nd-graders through their initial English Language Arts learning block at Vanguard Charter Academy, a GVSU-authorized charter public school in Wyoming, MI.
During those lessons, the teachers-in-training covered new vocabulary, sounded out challenging words with the entire class, gave reminders on the rules of capitalization, and checked in with students who were writing short stories on Chromebooks. The classrooms were a snapshot of the current generation of Lakers teaching future generations of Lakers, all thanks to the GVSU Charter Public Schools Clinical Field Experience Scholarship.
The GVSU Charter Public Schools Clinical Field Experience Scholarship is awarded each semester to undergraduate students at GVSU who are preparing to start their Teaching Apprenticeship or Student Teaching Internship. Scholarship recipients like Grace and Claire are placed in a GVSU-authorized charter public school in Detroit or West Michigan to complete their clinical field experience.
The opportunity to be part of a charter public school was one of the main reasons Grace applied for the scholarship.
"I wanted to learn more about teaching in a charter school environment to see what it was like compared to a district public school," she said.
As she stepped into her role at Vanguard, she noticed differences in things like student participation and curriculum structure.
"The big thing I noticed was the variety of ways that students here have the chance to learn the same piece of information. We aren't just doing memorization; we are using a lot of real-world application to the content we are teaching," she said.
Both Grace and Claire appreciated the robust support from teachers in their grade and the entire K-3 wing at Vanguard. Engaging in grade-level planning meetings, frequent planning periods with mentor teachers, and the autonomy to infuse their personalities into instruction were highlights of their experience.
"I really appreciate the collaborative approach and the level of autonomy that our mentor teachers provide us so we can still do our own thing and build our unique skills," said Claire.
The strategies witnessed at Vanguard, such as differentiation tactics and honing students' interpersonal skills, left a lasting impact on both Grace and Claire. They aspire to incorporate these methods into their future classrooms.
"Moral Focus is frequently referenced in daily interactions with our students at Vanguard, and it drives a lot of classroom behavior, so I want to make sure I include similar elements in my future classroom," said Claire.
Looking ahead to their careers, Claire is excited to continue teaching 2nd graders how to read and foundational math concepts because they are at an age where they "love coming to school” and are making incredible growth. Grace plans to continue to graduate school and is eager to keep refining her teaching philosophies and classroom management structures. No matter what comes next, their time at a GVSU-authorized charter public school provided them with an unforgettable learning experience.
"Before getting the scholarship, I had only heard that charter public schools were very strict on everything, "said Grace, "but what I really saw was a structure that creates more opportunities for staff and students to build understanding with the learning and with each other. My view about charter schools has completely changed: they aren't bad; this is a good place to be."