| Hi!
My name is Jamie Reinsch. I was "just an elementary classroom teacher" for over 32 years before retiring in December of 2004. Throughout my last 10 years of teaching, I was very active in many technology-related programs and conferences. I participated with many teachers around the world through a number of Internet projects and organizations. I was blessed with many opportunities for travel and conferences through my love of teaching. These travels and opportunities became the beginning of incredible friendships around the world. Although less active with most organizations than in the past, I still remain available for seminars or teaching classes in the following areas, as well as for conference presentations, workshops, keynote addresses, etc. I also enjoy attending conferences such as NECC and FETC when I am able to attend. These become opportunities for renewing old friendships and creating new ones. Now that I have retired from full-time teaching, I am continuing as an Adjunct Teacher at York Technical College . I also work with the Adult Education Program through the Rock Hill School District and teach night classes to prepare students for their GED exams. These are new and wonderful experiences that have also enriched my life. |
| Introduction to Using the Internet/Computers | The Magic of Internet in Your Elementary Classroom | Developing and Managing
An Online Project |
| Integration of Internet Into the Curriculum | Building Thematic Units Using the Internet | Special Recommended Online Organizations for Teachers |
| Children's Safety Issues on the Internet | Incorporating RealTime Chats in Everyday Learning | Hands-On Science Activities Live on the Net |
| Teaching Children to Be Global Citizens | Linking Elementary Classrooms with Senior Citizen Groups | Society and Technology |
Current Teaching Assignments: York
Technical College Rock Hill Adult Education Retired from full-time teaching with the Rock Hill School
District - December, 2004 |
| Educational History and Professional Development Activities: A. Education: Masters of Education, (1976) Bachelor of Science, (1972) Additional courses and training in science, computer technology, and Internet skills have been
Awards: Teacher of the
Year - School Level (three times) |
| B. Additional Employment History: Winthrop University, Rock Hill, South Carolina York Technical College, Rock Hill, South Carolina Rock Hill School District # 3 (Classroom
Teacher - 32.5 years Retired Dec., 2004) *1999-2004 Sullivan Middle School (grades 6,8 - Social Studies) *1985-1999 Rosewood Elementary School (grade 5) *1984-1985 York Road Elementary School (grade 1) *1973-1984 Ebenezer Elementary School (grades 3, 4, 5) *1972-1973 Richmond Drive School (grade 5) 1995-1996 York Technical College Continuing Education Dept. University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT |
| C. Professional Association Memberships
(Past and/or Present Memberships) International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE)
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| D. Staff Development Leadership Activity/ Future Teachers "Tales from the Heart, An Internet Project of Love" South Carolina Middle School Conference, Myrtle Beach, SC (March, 2000) Winthrop pre-service for student teachers on uses of computers within the classroom in the Rock Hill School District (May, 1996) "Integration of the Internet into the Curriculum," Connsense Conference, University of CT (July, 1996) "Tales From the Heart," The Southeastern Technology Conference, Greenville, SC (March, 1996) "Integrating Internet and WWW into the Curriculum through the use of On-line Projects," Co-presenter with Dr. Chauncey Rucker, Tel-Ed Conference, Ft. Lauderdale, Florida (Nov., 1995) Keynote Address, Teacher Training Institute, Charleston, SC (August, 1995) "The S.S. Central America Shipwrecks to Remember Project," Teacher Training Institute, Charleston, SC (August, 1995) "Integrating Kidlink and other Internet Networks into the Curriculum, The S.S. Central America Shipwrecks to Remember Project," Connsense Conference, CT (July, 1995) "The S.S. Central America Shipwrecks to Remember Project," "The S.S. Central America Shipwrecks to Remember Project," Lowcountry Instructional Technology Conference, Charleston, SC (March, 1995) Kidlink Leadership Panel Presentation, Panel member, National Educational Computing Conference, Boston, MA (June, 1994) "Using Internet to Enhance Curriculum," Co-presenter with Nancy Townsend and others, Information Access Conference, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC (April,1994) "Internet Uses Within the Classroom," Special Awareness Conference on Internet for K-12 Educational Leaders in the Winthrop Olde English Consortium, Rock Hill, SC (March, 1994) "Accessing the Internet," Teacher Training Institute, SCETV/Texaco, Rock Hill, SC (February, 1994) "Creating a Global Classroom," Rock Hill School District Teacher Inservice (January, 1994) "Introduction to Using Internet and FrEdMail in the Classroom," Wilson High School, Florence, SC (August, 1993) "Projects for Internet...Building Thematic Units," Castle Heights Middle School, Rock Hill School District Inservice (August, 1993) "Introduction to Using Internet and FrEdMail in the Classroom," co-presenter with Rebecca Lawson, Charleston Instructional Computing Conference (March, 1993) "Link Your Classroom to the World on the Internet," co-presenter with Rebecca Lawson, SC Middle School Conference, Myrtle Beach, SC (February, 1993) "Using Internet in the Classroom," co-presenter with Rebecca Lawson, Upstate Computing Conference at Blue Ridge, Greer, SC (January, 1993) "BSAP Science - Model Science Units," co-presenter with Sandra Thompson and Kaye Dunbar, series of workshops for elementary science teachers in Rock Hill School District # 3 (1992-93) "AIMS Ideas for Elementary Teachers," (from Activities that Integrate Math and Science), co-presenter, Rock Hill District Inservice (August, 1991) "Establishing a Salt Water Ecosystem in the Classroom," South Carolina Marine Educator's Conference, Myrtle Beach, SC (October, 1991) |
| Philosophy of Teaching As a teacher of students who will live and govern the world of the future, I believe it is imperative that I do al I can to prepare my students for success in that future world. The first challenge for any teacher is to identify the skills students will need to successfully navigate within that future world. In a world where our knowledge and technology are constantly changing and irrevocably linked to each other, it is vital that as teachers, we endeavor to utilize the tools and knowledge needed for teaching students that will empower them to find great joy and excitement in their learning. I continue to enjoy a love of learning because I know that whatever knowledge and skill I can deliver to my students will enable them to function more successfully in the life they will live.Once skills needed by the students have been identified, the second challenge of any teacher should be in finding the best way to invite students to discover their individual and personal need for those skills. This means providing an atmosphere in which the student can learn the skill and apply it to their perception of their life as an adult in the world community. At the same time, the intuitive teacher must also make students aware of the tentative nature of the "knowledge base" they have available. The teacher must provide enough information and confidence in the individual student's abilities to encourage a desire to attempt new learning throughout all stages of life. It is the development and nurturing of such a "need to know and understand" that will enable the student to become a successful and confident adult. Retraining becomes necessary in most areas of employment as our technology and information base changes. The teacher who can empower students with the tools needed to understand, accept, and embrace change is the teacher who is needed for the successful transition of any student to a productive and enthusiastic adult member of the community in which he/she chooses to live. It is the successful merging of these two challenges that I find the greatest satisfaction in teaching. It is not the age of the student, or the level of the learning that excites me about what I am doing in education. The satisfaction I receive is in the eyes of the learner when I see that realization of the ability to alter the ordinary with knowledge the individual is able to discover on their own because I may have helped them learn how to do so. Knowing how to access the information and sources where it can be found gives that student of the future some control over what he/she will do when changes occur in their chosen vocation. It is this spark of enthusiasm and belief in fostering individual ownership of the ability to change and grow beyond the knowledge of today that brings me to where I am in teaching today. Over the last few years, I have been given the opportunity to see a vision of the future of our educational system. I have been even more fortunate to be given the chance to share pieces of that vision with students in my own classroom, as well as with teachers throughout Rock Hill, throughout South Carolina, and even with teachers from around the world. The use of technology has brought my classroom into the international school of the future. This is where students and teachers of today will live and work throughout their lifetime. They are learning how to communicate with people of varied cultures and different values, just through communication, and are learning about the world community and their responsibilities to that community at the same time. My greatest rewards in teaching come from the responses I see in the faces of those I touch, regardless of age, gender, or nationality. My reward as a teacher, will always be that look of amazement in the teacher's eye when they first receive a message, or the desire of a student to work for hours to send just the right message to a new friend, or the look of disbelief the first time a student reads a letter from a foreign land, or the excited phone call from a teacher around the world just wanting to say thank you for sharing an idea or experience. I think back to the smile on my face the first time I saw any of this and realized that it was possible for me, as an ordinary teacher, to use this within my own classroom to dissolve the walls of distance and experience. The ability to expand my classroom beyond the walls of a building has also expanded my philosophy of teaching as I had known it in the past. The greatest reward I have is now in seeing in others that same smile of success and ownership of the future. |
| References:
Larry S. Anderson, Ed.D. Phone: 662/844-9630 (Voice & FAX) •Cell: 662.321.0677 Internet: larry@NCTP.com Founder/Director, National Center for Technology Planning Former Chair, Council for Education Technology—State of Mississippi Associate Professor (Ret.), Department of Technology and Education—Mississippi State University |
Patti Weeg |
| Allen Leonard, Principal aleonard@rock-hill.k12.sc.us.edu South Pointe High School Rock Hill, SC 29730 |