Subject: A Note of Thanks

Dear Camilla Smith,


This email has been on my mind for some time so I hope you'll forgive its belated nature. I wanted to reach out to express my gratitude  for the funding and support that you provided in the creation of the Smith Learning Theater.


To provide a bit of context, I am the Co-Director of the Teaching Residents at Teachers College program (TR@TC) and have used this learning space for portions of our Global Citizens summer programming. 


TR@TC as a whole is an 18-month residency-style teacher preparation program designed to support pre-service teachers who are working toward entering careers in secondary-level NYC public schools. A priority of the work of our program has been to continually identify and design meaningful and enriching learning experiences that bring high school students, teachers and our TR@TC pre-service teachers together and that enhance TR@TC community members' visions for what teaching and learning can be. Having access to a space like the Smith Learning Theater has contributed to the development of those visions in ways that have led to exciting new ideas for our community.

For example, in 2019, high school students and teachers, undergraduate interns (who are considering careers as teachers) and TR@TC pre-service teachers came together to be part of one of our Global Citizens programs, TR@TC Citizen Scientist. This is a three week summer course where high school students gather data in the field at different parts of the Harlem and East Rivers and then analyze and synthesize their data to present findings to our local community. 

Teaching Assistants complete fieldwork to prepare for summer programming

 

Students complete chemical tests of the Harlem River near the NYC Botanical Gardens

After collecting specimens, students prepare to identify organism near Roosevelt Island

 

Students analyze macroinvertebrates collected in the Harlem River

 

This experience has been co-constructed by new and experienced teachers over the years and in the 2019 iteration, we were especially working to find ways to enhance students' experiences of synthesizing and presenting their findings to a wider community. The Smith Learning Theater played an important role in this process.


After working with library staff to plan for this experience, our group entered an essentially blank-canvas version of the theater with data from our fieldwork in hand. We then worked with our high school students to think through, design and create products that were meant to make the findings from their data come alive. We were fortunate to work with library staff who helped us access resources for students to use in building/creating their contributions and to also document the experience of the students. (I've included a short film below that captured the experience). 

 

While working in the Smith Learning Theater was only a portion of our summer programming, we found that the experience of having a space where students were able to realize their own visions for presenting their findings was truly special. Using the space allowed our teaching staff (teachers, pre-service teachers, and interns) to also honor the work of our students in a way that connected them to critical issues in our world. Also, it inspired our teachers to think about the possibilities of their own classrooms in new ways. Most importantly, it provided a creative space where we could come together to talk about issues as a community.


While a virtual version of our program was enacted this year because of the pandemic, we look forward to a day when we are able to continue to develop this experience and with our school and community partners!


We don't always have the opportunity to know how we've touched the lives of others, but I to send this note as a way to voice how you have touched the lives of our community for good -- and we are so appreciative of that.


With Gratitude,


Suzanne Pratt

Co-Director

Teaching Residents at Teachers College (TR@TC)

Teachers College, Columbia University, 525 West 120th Street Box 097, New York, NY 10027, United States

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