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Teacher of the Year |
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A Committee of educators, community representatives, and former teachers of the Year has designated three teachers from across Knox County to be Teachers of the year for 2008. The winners portfolios will be sent to the East Tennessee Region of the State Department of Education for further competition and possible advancement to the state level. Six teachers from around the state will be named Tennessee Teachers of the Year. One of them will advance to the national competition. This year the candidate's scores were very close. As a result, the following runners-up should be congratulated also. Grades PreK-4 1st Runner-up
2nd Runners-up
3rd Runner-up
4th Runnerup
Grades 5-8 1st Runner-up
2nd Runner-up
3rd Runner-up
4th Runnerup
Grades 9-12 1st Runners-up
2nd Runner-up
3rd Runner-up
4th Runnerup
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Lynn Gordon White always wanted to be a teacher ever since helping her mother with creating materials for her classroom and helping her grade papers. White earned her BS degree in elementary education from Tennessee Tech University in 1993 and her MS in educational administration and supervision from the University of Tennessee in 1997. She began her teaching career at Chilhowee Intermediate in Knoxville where she taught 4th grade for three years. She taught at Karns Intermediate before teaching at Hardin Valley Elementary where she has been since 1993. White serves her school as the lead mentor on the core mentor team, co-chairs the school improvement planning process, is chairperson of the Character Education Action Team and helped chair the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools accreditation process. She is a member of the Smoky Mountain Reading Council, Smoky Mountain Math Educators Association, and KCEA as well as being involved with Girl Scout Troop 723 of which she is co-leader. White is active in her church and is co-president of the Gulfwood Swim Team. The daughter of a high school teacher, White first ignored her life-long dream of becoming a teacher and began college as an engineering student. Although she did well in her classes, she loathed every minute of it and changed her major to elementary education and has never looked back. “It’s all about the children,” wrote White in her application for Teacher of the Year. “Teaching is all about the children I am entrusted with each day. Being an effective teacher is about doing my best to identify and meet the ever-changing needs of each child in my class.” Personal Philosophy of Teaching: "It's all about the children." Teaching is all about the children that I have been entrusted with each and every day. As a teacher I am responsible for a class of students, but I am also responsible for the growth and development of each individual child in that class. My responsibilities to these children include, but are not limited to teacher, mother, nurse, counselor, disciplinarian, referee, encourager, enforcer, listener, lecturer, guide, and motivator. My roles change on a daily basis, fluctuate many times throughout the day, and vary with regard to each individual child. Being an effective teacher is about doing my best to identify and meet the ever-changing needs of each child in my class. For seven hours that they are with me each weekday, they are "my children." "It's all about the children." A child's education should extend far beyond the four walls of the school system. As a teacher it is my responsibility to teach these children not only the required skills and concepts that they need to learn for a particular grade level, but how to use and apply these lessons in their world beyond the classroom. I encourage my students to ask questions, think critically, learn from their mistakes, explore their interests, and read, read, then read some more. "It's all about the children." My rewards from teaching come from the successes and accomplishments of my students. These rewards come in all shapes and sizes. A success might be something as small as remembering to carry and regroup the numbers correctly when adding a column of numbers. The sense of accomplishment that this student experiences in mastering this important skill is critical to his or her growth as a learner and an increase in his or her self-confidence. When a student experiences a significant accomplishment, such as winning our school's spelling bee, this is also rewarding to me. Whenever students commit their time, energy, and heart to a task or project, they want to experience a positive outcome. My role as a teacher is to equip my students with the skills and knowledge that they need to be successful in their efforts, whatever and wherever those may be. As teachers we should be concerned with the educational experience of all children, not just the ones in our class each year. It is important that I work with other teachers, both at my grade-level, other grades in our school, and across our school system, to plan together, develop curriculum, and share ideas. This learning community also extends to mentoring teacher education students in my classroom as well as mentoring teachers who are new to our profession. Sharing ideas and experiences with these aspiring educators is critical to the future effectiveness and success of education. This collaboration ultimately benefits our students. My personal teaching style is a reflection of the children in my class each year. Children will work to accomplish what is expected of them, and I have high expectations for each of these children. I firmly and lovingly hold them to these standards. I work with them to develop and master the skills that the need to be successful in their school environment and in their lives: working hard, doing your best, personal responsibility, respect for others, and respect for yourself. Teaching is all about the children - their experiences, their accomplishments, and their successes.
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