Hello! My name is Katy McDonald. I am a sixth year teacher in the Redford Union School District. I am a newlywed who still hasn’t changed her name with MSU. McDonald is my maiden name, but I still use it in the classroom since I have had many of my students for years now.
I have a crazy schedule teaching High School Alternative Ed. Some classes, like my Social Studies classes, are taught traditionally out of a textbook. My other classes, including English and Science classes, are online classes using Compass Learning. All said and done, I teach or administer thirteen different courses during five class periods. On top of my teaching schedule I am the head of my School Improvement Committee. I am also the building testing coordinator and supervisor for the ACT/MME and MEAP tests. I’m worn out just thinking about all of those responsibilities!
Adjusting to teaching Alternative Ed has been an interesting journey. Some of my students are rough around the edges. They are the hard to reach kids with behavior issues. Most just need more time spent with them and a smaller environment. After being recalled to this position after a layoff, I now volunteer for the program. I have grown to love the program, but I will admit it was not my dream job when I first started. The program has evolved to include the online learning, a great idea in theory, but I struggle everyday because my building is lacking in technology. We do not have digital projectors or fancy gadgets, so I have decided to start this program at MSU to try and seek out different ways to integrate technology into the very classrooms that lack the equipment.
Since many of my students are currently learning online, I felt the online classes at MSU could help give me a new perspective on online classes. I learn best by taking notes and rereading material more than once. I am a visual learner, so it helps me to have visual aids.
My current educational passion is to work to adapt our Alternative Ed program to meet the needs of the students we have enrolled and find new and different ways to engage the truly hard to reach students I see every day. My primary goal for this course/semester is to keep my mind, my eyes, and my ears open to any new (or old) idea that I can use in my building. I am also looking for new ways to train staff members on the new software and provide them with helpful resources. Creating better resources would cut down on the phone calls I receive every hour looking for help with software and technology programs.
I look forward to discussions and sharing ideas with all of you!
