College of Education News

CODERS project expands opportunities for rural students

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In 2020, Missouri State University received an Education, Innovation and Research Early Phase grant from the U.S. Department of Education. 

Worth $4 million, the grant’s purpose was to implement the Computer-Science Opportunities, Development and Education in Rural Schools (CODERS) project over five years.  

CODERS is a collaborative project among faculty members from the College of Education (COE), College of Natural and Applied Sciences and Reynolds College of Arts, Social Sciences and Humanities.  

Led by project director Dr. Keri Franklin, professor of English and director of the Center for Writing in College, Career and Community, CODERS assists rural teachers in engaging their students in computer science, computational thinking, physics and writing in elementary and middle grades. 

Since CODERS began, it has worked with 54 rural teachers, over 3,000 students and 17 rural school districts. According to Franklin, data show that CODERS is having a significant impact on student scores.  

“Students from those districts who have participated in CODERS increase science scores by 46% and 10% in mathematics,” Franklin said.  

These results came from 850 students before and after collecting CODERS data. Test scores were taken before CODERS was implemented.

Seminars on campus

The CODERS project team offers seminars on campus every summer and four times during the school year. To date, teachers from 19 rural communities have participated.

The teachers receive hands-on training on how to teach computer science, coding and other STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics)-related subjects to students in fun and engaging ways. 

A group of teachers was on campus June 4-6 for the summer seminar. Helping with the seminar was Dr. Tammi Davis, a faculty member in COE’s School of Teaching, Learning and Development Sciences. 

Tammi R. Davis
Dr. Tammi Davis

Davis works closely with the teachers to support them as they teach lessons in the classroom and monitors the submission of their teaching reflections. She also works with the group’s teaching leaders who led much of the professional development this summer. 

According to Davis, one of her favorite parts of the project is helping teachers choose how to use their designated grant funding to expand their classrooms. 

“One teacher built a computer lab STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics) room based on supplies she got from our grant,” Davis said.  

Davis grew up going to a rural school in southern Indiana. 

“If you turn left at the stoplight, you pass driver’s ed, so that tells you how small my community was,” Davis said. 

She notes the CODERS project gives opportunities to students that she wished she had as a student. 

“I wish I was exposed to computer science in elementary/middle school, which is the age group we work with on this grant,” Davis said. “The first time I really did any type of computer coding was in college and I think that’s too late.” 

Career education 

The CODERS project also aims to help teachers by providing them with resources for their classroom to promote STEM-based career fields to students.  

Examples of these resources include the IF/THEN Collection and Educator Hub, which highlight real photographs of women in their STEM-related field. 

“Computer science is one of many jobs students could be eligible for, so we teach that career component as well,” Davis said. 

Find out more about CODERS

Dr. Tammi Davis featured in Mind’s Eye

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Congratulations to Dr. Tammi Davis for her recent feature in Mind’s Eye magazine. Davis is associate professor in the School of Teaching, Learning and Developmental Sciences at Missouri State University.

As an educator with over 20 years of experience — including 10 years as a teacher educator — Davis has prioritized her research to study the experiences of new teachers.

Congratulations Dr. Davis!

The full story is now available online.

Excerpt:

During the course of her research, Dr. Tammi Davis has found there is a lack of guidance and support for teachers in the early years of their careers.

“The first few years are a crucial time in the development of novice teachers,” said Davis, associate professor in the School of Teaching, Learning and Developmental Sciences at Missouri State University. “They need mentorship and support to help guide them so they’re not navigating it all alone.” 

Evidence shows formal mentorship provides teachers with the support they need for their professional development. But there is little research on the implementation and effectiveness of formal mentorship programs, and it is not standardized across the U.S. 

“Many states that require teachers to have mentors don’t have high quality mentorship programs,” Davis said. “Some states don’t require mentors at all.”  

Read the full story

Dr. Jennice McCafferty-Wright selected for a Fullbright-Hays summer fellowship abroad

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Join us in congratulating Missouri State University’s Dr. Jennice McCafferty-Wright on being selected for a summer 2024 fellowship to Tanzania-Zanzibar hosted by the School of International Training.  

“Tuko Pamoja: Tanzanian Creativity and Perspectives in an Era of Climate Change,” is funded by a Fulbright-Hays Group Project Abroad grant from the Department of Education. Only six U.S. professors were selected for this incredible opportunity. 

“I’m so grateful my colleague Dr. Sarah Nixon forwarded the application to me,” said McCafferty-Wright, assistant professor in the School of Teaching, Learning and Developmental Sciences. “Schools, communities, coral reefs, Kilimanjaro, nature reserves, an introduction to Swahili — this promises to be an incredibly memorable journey!” 

The five-week fellowship will focus on providing ways for educators to bring African perspectives into their classrooms when discussing climate change. This connects to the work she has begun as an MSU sustainability fellow. 

“I’m most excited about the opportunity to learn from and with educators and researchers in Tanzania-Zanzibar,” McCafferty-Wright said. 

In this fellowship, she will hear from a wide variety of voices, ranging from Tanzanian policymakers to smallholder farmers in the Maasai community.  

“International relationships and experiences can help us think about our work in a more complex way,” McCafferty-Wright said. “The work I’m doing will also help me establish collaborative relationships for projects that will ultimately benefit our students.” 

Discover more about Education Programs

COE alumna Courtney Baker named Teacher of the Year

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For her excellence in teaching, Missouri State University alumna Courtney Baker received the Teacher of the Year award for Hawthorn Elementary School, based in St. Peters, Missouri.  

Hawthorn is part of the Fort Zumwalt School District, which is headquartered in O’Fallon.  

“I was really honored to have had five different nominations this year to win this award,” Baker said. “It feels good when your hard work is noticed. That’s not why you do it, but it feels good when people appreciate you. Our school does an assembly with all the kids gathered chanting your name, and it’s always so fun.” 

Baker is also a finalist for the district’s Educator of the Year award. 

From West County, St. Louis, Baker has been teaching for eight years. She currently teaches kindergarten but has also taught first and second grade in the past.  

A positive Missouri State experience 

Baker first attended Missouri State from 2011-2015 to pursue a bachelor’s degree in early childhood education. Wanting to become an expert in her field, she completed her master’s degree in early childhood and family development online in 2019. 

The biggest impact on Baker during her education was Dr. Denise Cunningham, associate dean of MSU’s College of Education.  

“She made it real for us,” Baker said. “She made it clear it wasn’t going to be sunshine and daisies every day in the classroom. She taught us real life survival.”  

Though Cunningham was upfront with the realities of teaching, Baker found her lessons exciting and engaging.  

“If she’s having this much fun teaching us, imagine how much fun we’re going to have when it’s our time as well,” Baker said. 

 Her favorite part of being a student at Missouri State was the energetic atmosphere.  

“There’s so much to be a part of everywhere you look,” she said. “We always called it a big school with a small school feel.” 

In her final year as a student, Baker served as president of University Ambassadors and received the Senior Woman of the Year award. 

Impacting young lives  

Baker comes from a long line of nurturing women with careers in nursing. While she always knew she wanted to help others, a job involving blood was off the table. 

“To be honest, kindergarteners’ teeth falling out at random is pushing it!” Baker said. 

Through her experiences working at summer camps and volunteering at a children’s crisis nursery, Baker’s heart discovered it had a special place for working with young children. 

“They have such a passion for life and such a unique outlook,” Baker said. “You get to help them not just with their learning, but in becoming a good person as well.” 

Recently, Baker read her students a book called, “How Full is Your Bucket,” as part of a lesson about spreading kindness to others.  

“Now everything I hear is, ‘I’m filling their bucket,’ ‘they’re filling my bucket.’ It’s so sweet to hear,” Baker said. 

When she started teaching at Hawthorn, Baker taught the same class of students from kindergarten through second grade.  While learning three new curriculums in a row was challenging, Baker found the overall experience rewarding because she got to watch her kids grow and see their humor develop and their abilities change.  

“It was really cool to forge a bond with those students and have trust and expectations built going year to year,” she said. 

One of Baker’s favorite parts of teaching younger children is following their progress throughout elementary school.  

“Sometimes the really, really quiet kid in kindergarten is the star of the school play in fifth grade. I love that I get to see these kids grow up and come out of their shells,” she shared. 

Some advice to share  

Baker tells students considering a career in early childhood education to “go for it; it’s super fun.”  

She encourages students to attend practicum opportunities while at Missouri State to experience the classroom environment.  

“What you go in thinking you want to teach might not actually be your calling,” Baker said. 

 She discourages those just entering the workforce from overwhelming themselves with the expectation of doing everything at once.  

“Get in there, do your best and follow your curriculum,” she said. “Don’t try to be the ‘Pinterest Teacher.’” 

Learn more about early childhood education programs

Getting ready to shape students’ futures

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Aleila Cage has a passion for learning, equity and her community. She decided to pursue an education degree because she wanted to foster a safe space for all students. 

This semester, she is completing her student teaching at Springfield’s Reed Academy in 7th and 8th grade social studies. 

“Student teaching has been a roller coaster of events,” Cage said. “Middle schoolers keep you on your toes. Their perspectives and experiences give me a meaningful approach to teaching.” 

Cage was selected for the second cohort of the Future Educators Program. This partnership between Missouri State and Springfield Public Schools seeks to recruit, hire, and retain educators from diverse backgrounds to the district. 

Her time at Missouri State 

From St. Louis, Missouri, Cage transferred to MSU from Southern Baptist University after having positive experiences with the campus community. She is now in her last semester of the middle school education program. 

“The entire education program has had the most positive impact on me,” Cage said.  

At MSU, she has found professors who model what a good educator looks like. She notes Dr. Julie Steiger and Dr. Ashley Payne have played a major part in shaping her into the educator she is today. 

After graduating this spring, Cage plans on teaching middle school while pursuing a master’s degree in education.  

Engaging with the campus and larger community

Cage is the president of Missouri State’s NAACP chapter. She joined the NAACP because it is the largest civil rights organization in the country, and she is proud to be a part of their fight for equity. 

“The past, present and future of this nation is shaped by the NAACP,” Cage said.  

She is also vice president of Sigma Gamma Rho, a historically African American sorority. Cage resonated with this organization because it was founded by educators. She said she found a true sisterhood within her chapter of people who share her goals. 

Off campus, Cage is also a cheer coach at Central High School in Springfield and a pre-teen coordinator at the Boys and Girls Clubs of Springfield. In this position, she develops programs and curriculum encouraging self-growth and healthy lifestyles for students aged 11-13.   

Offering some advice 

Her advice to those wanting to pursue education is to get organized, practice patience and be intentional.  

“Remember, you’re shaping the future,” Cage said.  

She believes education is one of the most important careers someone can engage in.  

“Be that person your younger self would need.” 

Learn more about education programs at MSU