69ý

Special Report
College & Workforce Readiness

New Educators Look Back at Virtual-Teacher Prep.

By Ian Quillen — September 20, 2010 2 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print
Email Copy URL

When Martin Szczuczynski finished his first teaching internship as a junior at Orlando’s University of Central Florida, his main knowledge of K-12 virtual education came from what college friends told him about taking online classes in high school.

And while his teenage and 20-something friends didn’t exactly dive into deep discussions about pedagogy and curriculum, they went far enough that he checked a box on his post-internship evaluation expressing interest in doing his second teaching internship online.

“I was very curious,” said Mr. Szczuczynski, who a year later is also known as Mr. S. by his physical science students in his first year as a full-time instructor with the Florida Virtual School. “I had ideas in my head, and I wanted to see if they were true.”

E-Learning 2010:
E-Educators Evolving

Overview: About This Report
States Eye Standards for Virtual Educators
Ed. Groups Outline E-Teacher Quality Guidelines
Teachers Make the Move to the Virtual World
Virtual Teacher Training Seen to Lack Consistency
69ý Blend Virtual and Face-to-Face Teaching
E-Educators Use Daily Mix of Digital Tools
Ed. 69ý Lag Behind in Virtual Teacher Training
New Educators Look Back at Virtual-Teacher Prep.
Distinctive Demands Make Compensation Complicated
Web Extras
Webinar: Evaluating E-Educators’ Evolving Skills
Online Chat: Teaching in Two Worlds: Virtual And Face-to-Face
Digital Edition Read the interactive digital edition of E-Learning 2010: E-Educators Evolving.

It turns out they weren’t—which is exactly the point of Central Florida’s collaborative internship program with Florida Virtual, or FLVS. Born out of what university and the virtual school officials saw as a mutual need to increase staffing at FLVS and prepare pre-service teachers for the virtual environment, the program helped dispel the notion that K-12 virtual education mirrored online college courses, in which professors typically push content and students work independently, Mr. Szczuczynski said.

‘Really Reinforcing’

Instead, when he partnered with an FLVS advising teacher, he fought the same challenges many virtual instructors battle during their first real year on the job, such as managing time, understanding students’ moods, and maintaining confidence in their teaching skills without the affirmation of flesh-and-blood colleagues nearby.

But after learning the tools of the trade during his internship—including using emoticons “like no other"—he said he entered his full-time position this past summer well ahead of his first-year colleagues.

“I’ve found that I have a great reputation with people I’ve never even seen face to face,” Mr. Szczuczynski said.

Fellow former intern Laura Scott-Kappler, now a first-year global studies teacher for the Florida Virtual School, also said she began her teaching career with an advantage over her fellow rookies.

“I definitely learned some new things in my [new-teacher] orientation, but it was really reinforcing what I had already learned,” recalled Ms. Scott-Kappler."The other teachers who were around me were really frazzled.”

Perhaps more important for Florida Virtual, which has to invest its own resources to train most new teachers from scratch, the internship program left Ms. Scott-Kappler with enough of a taste that she wanted more.

Within the last couple weeks of the internship, she said, “I felt, ‘Man, I’ve got this down. And now I feel like this is ending.”

A version of this article appeared in the September 22, 2010 edition of Education Week as New Educators Look Back at Virtual-Teacher Preparation

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Artificial Intelligence Webinar
AI and Educational Leadership: Driving Innovation and Equity
Discover how to leverage AI to transform teaching, leadership, and administration. Network with experts and learn practical strategies.
Content provided by 
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
School Climate & Safety Webinar
Investing in Success: Leading a Culture of Safety and Support
Content provided by 
Assessment K-12 Essentials Forum Making Competency-Based Learning a Reality
Join this free virtual event to hear from educators and experts working to implement competency-based education.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.

Read Next

College & Workforce Readiness The Way 69ý Offer CTE Classes Is About to Change. Here's How
The revision could lead to significant shifts in the types of jobs schools highlight, and the courses students are able to take.
4 min read
Photo of student working with surveying equipment.
E+
College & Workforce Readiness Even in Academic Classes, 69ý Focus on Building 69ý' Workforce Skills
69ý work on meeting academic standards. What happens when they focus on different sets of skills?
11 min read
69ý participate in reflections after a day of learning in Julia Kromenacker’s 3rd grade classroom at Old Mill Elementary School in Mt. Washington, Ky. on Wednesday, October 16, 2024.
69ý participate in reflections after a day of learning in Julia Kromenacker’s 3rd grade classroom at Old Mill Elementary School in Mt. Washington, Ky., on Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. The Bullitt County district that includes Old Mill Elementary has incorporated a focus on building more general life skills, like collaboration, problem-solving, and communication, that community members and employers consistently say they want from students coming out of high school.
Sam Mallon/Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness Preparing for the Workforce Can Start as Early as 1st Grade. What It Looks Like
Preparing students for college and career success starts well before high school—and it doesn’t only involve occupation-specific training.
5 min read
Jenna Bray, a 1st grade teacher at Old Mill Elementary School in Mt. Washington, Ky., helps her student Lucas Joiner on an online learning assignment on Wednesday, October 16, 2024.
Jenna Bray, a 1st grade teacher at Old Mill Elementary School in Mt. Washington, Ky., helps student Lucas Joiner on an online learning assignment on Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. The Bullitt County district, which includes Old Mill Elementary, has incorporated a focus on equipping students with more general life skills—like communication, critical thinking, and problem-solving—that employers and community members consistently say they want from students coming out of high school.
Sam Mallon/Education Week
College & Workforce Readiness What the Research Says How Well Do Dual-Credit 69ý Do in College? A Look in Charts
New data show some students get more access—and more leverage—from taking postsecondary classes in high school.
3 min read
Illustration of students
Muhamad Chabib alwi/iStock/Getty