After winning the 2012 RI Teacher of the Year, Boyle was scouted out by Shanghai Education Magazine and asked to take a trip to China to present on different teaching methods. She was specifically asked to represent the North East and teachers at the high school level. Excited, she accepted the offer and boarded her plane to Shanghai on September 20th. Once she landed, it was a nonstop adventure.
BY RITA STUBBS
On September 20th, a teacher from CHS was able to venture across the world to speak on the topic of teaching in China. Mrs. Boyle, a well-known twelfth grade English teacher and head of the English Department, was handpicked by Shanghai Education Magazine to speak in both Shanghai and Shenzhen, China. Boyle said that this was a great experience to teach and also to learn. Through the journey she was also very touched by the excitement that the teachers of China showed about learning her teaching techniques.
“If there was anything that brought me success over my fifteen years of teaching, it was the personal relationship I tried to create with each and every one of my students,” said Boyle. This was just one of the reasons that she was chosen as the 2012 RI Teacher of the Year. She believes that for children to learn, there needs to be individualized teaching in a classroom. She says she values checking up on her students with formative assessments which show what each student knows and hasn’t yet learned. Through this individualistic approach to learning, her students are able to form a special relationship with Mrs. Boyle and to monitor their own learning.
After winning the 2012 RI Teacher of the Year, Boyle was scouted out by Shanghai Education Magazine and asked to take a trip to China to present on different teaching methods. She was specifically asked to represent the North East and teachers at the high school level. Excited, she accepted the offer and boarded her plane to Shanghai on September 20th. Once she landed, it was a nonstop adventure.
The people of Shanghai and Shenzhen treated Boyle as a celebrity. “We were treated like rockstars! People were asking for pictures with us, we were front page news, some even asked for autographs! It was all very humbling.” Her time in China was filled with two large presentations, two smaller presentations and time with the government. Through these presentations Mrs. Boyle used the same formative assessment teaching methods she uses in her class.
“I was speaking on checking up on my students while teaching, I wasn’t going to stand and lecture. That would negate my point completely.” While speaking, she would ask her audience to give a thumbs up or down to see if they understood her point or if she needed to better explain. This gave the teachers ideas to branch off of in their own classrooms.
Although Mrs. Boyle’s week was filled with presentations and meetings, she was able to experience some of the Chinese culture through visits to museums and other activities. After waking up early one morning, Boyle went to a park near her hotel and was able to experience Da Ma, a type of dance that incorporates exercise. At another point she was able to visit the Shanghai Financial Tower which is the tallest building in China and the second tallest building in the world. This tower has a glass floor, which made the experience even more exciting. Although she wished she could have experienced more of the culture and she was disappointed not to see The Great Wall, she was very excited by what she was able to see while there.
The CHS community is proud that Mrs. Boyle represented our school and state in China. We are so proud that she was able to partake in this experience and thankful that she was willing to share it with us. Again, congratulations to Mrs. Boyle!!
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