Cheryl Glowacki – Science Teacher

Our science classrooms are constantly evolving, just as the world around us is. The Rhode Island Training School (RITS) is excited to build upon our experiential learning opportunities with our onsite Urban Garden and through our relationship with the Sea Research Foundation STEM Mentoring Program at Mystic Aquarium.

My classroom allows students to take their subject matter and to not only learn by “studying” the material, but also by doing, watching, and discussing. Students participate in creating the path, where possible, for their personal science educational experience.

By using our blended learning model and a variety of teaching tools such as Scholastic Science World, in class experiments or projects, yogic practice days, and the creative and expressive arts, students can meet content expectations and/or can recover missing science credits. My goal is to support students feeling successful in school and to create a classroom where students are learning and doing, and creating a place where they feel loved and appreciated just for their participation.

My science education philosophy comes from both a human and holistic perspective. Taking the ancient and historical sciences and bringing students into a new modern approach using yogic principles within a social-emotional-academic fusion, demonstrating the interrelatedness that exists in the Universe, students will be encouraged to translanguage where applicable, and explore learning that is trauma-informed and multicultural.

My purpose as a teacher here at the RITS is to be sure that my students have experiences that stick out in their minds to help them retain the necessary information to be successful outside our facility. Science is all around them and I hope that their time in my classroom is meaningful enough to guide them towards their science credit completion or their successful passing of the science GED test.

Key skills that I am hopeful each student leaves with are:

• advocacy for their science education and experience, 
• dedication to expanding their knowledge base, 
• observing the current state of science in the world around them, 
• how you communicate what you’ve learned, 
• proper notetaking,
• independent study skills, 
• critical thinking and skepticism of information, and 
• how and where to navigate for accurate information

Students are graded daily for their in-class participation and assignment(s) using a 100-point system. Grades will be averaged to attain their quarterly grade. Missing assignments are always allowed to be made up by the end of each quarter. Classroom behavior and school behavior points may impact daily grades depending on the infraction and work completed.

Success in my classroom is a collaboration between myself, the student(s), our faculty/staff, and the family/community support for our youth – one I look forward to and enjoy!