Teacher of the Year Visits HGSE

Michele Forman, the 2001 National Teacher of the Year, visited the Harvard Graduate School of Education earlier this month to talk with young teachers in training. Joining a session of the Learning and Teaching course, "Teaching History/Social Studies" with lecturer Sally Schwager, Forman expounded upon issues in teaching, education, and how the lessons of the classroom are often lessons of life.

As the 51st National Teacher of the Year, Forman acts for a year as a full-time national and international spokesperson for education. She began her remarks at HGSE by noting the irony that being honored for her teaching has taken her out of her classroom. "I'm not in a regular classroom these days, and I miss it terribly," said Forman. "So I'm happy to be here with young teachers today."

Forman, a social sciences teacher from Middlebury Union High School in Middlebury, Vt., says she emphasizes the importance of an incredibly strong teacher-learner relationship. This relationship is built on flexibility, patience, acceptance, and care, with a classroom of students with varied backgrounds and ability levels. "Our job as teachers is to provide avenues for [all] students that access [all] their strengths," Forman explained. "There are many pathways to learning. Do any two students learn alike? Of course not--we're all individuals."

As Much a Student as a Teacher

Forman's link to students is that she sees herself as being as much a student as she is a teacher. She learned Arabic to further her study of world history and teaches an Arabic course at her school. Forman also is a founding member of the Student Coalition on Human Rights, which has sponsored such events as bringing a portion of the AIDS Quilt to Middlebury and leading Middlebury's observance of the statewide Holocaust Days of Remembrance.

Forman was chosen National Teacher of the Year from among the State Teachers of the Year for 2001. More than 5,000 teachers participate in Teacher of the Year programs at the local, state, and national levels each year. The National Teacher of the Year Program is the oldest and most prestigious awards program to focus public attention on excellence in teaching. It is sponsored by the Council of Chief State School Officers and Scholastic, Inc., the global children's publishing and media company.

For More Information

Visit the Teacher of the Year site on the Scholastic.com website.