BALTIMORE — An amazing program offered in two Baltimore City schools had record breaking interests from students this year.
Western High School is one of two schools that offer a Teacher Academy program for the youth.
Now instructors are aiming to help with the teacher shortage by educating their students on how to become the next teachers.
Students like Kimora Allen and Dianny Decent shared what inspired their interest in the program and their dream to be teachers.
“I want to be a teacher because I love kids. I want to make an impact at an early stage,” Allen said.
“When I was in fifth grade, my teacher saw that I haven't eaten lunch and she like handed me a banana and told me to go in the back of class and eat. I feel like, it felt like a small moment to her, but it really meant a lot to me and that really inspired me to be that person for other people,” Decent said.
Brittany Horne, who’s the principal at Western High School, said this program will eventually help with the teacher shortage.
“As you all know, there is a deficit when it comes to instructors all over the country. This program is definitely going to help with being a solution to that problem,” Horne said.
Western High is the oldest all girl high school in our nation and this year it’s teacher academy program, which is usually set to hold 15 students, had more than 40 sophomores who enrolled.
“In the Teacher Academy they learn about child development in the first course. Then, in the second course, they learn about education and educational systems,” Krikorian said.
Dr. Jacqueline Krikorian, who’s the main instructor for the TAM program at Western High, said students have an opportunity to earn college credits while in the program, giving them a jump start into their future as a teacher.
"It starts in the tenth grade, students will take human growth and development,” Krikorian said.
The courses combine psychology anatomy and biology to address child and adolescent development, along with the physical characteristics of growth.
“In the eleventh grade, the second course in the pathway is teaching as a profession. And in teaching as a profession, students learn what it's really like to be a teacher,” Krikorian said.
They also learn how the education system works along with its history.
“Then in the senior year, students learn more information about their learners, different types of learners,” Krikorian said.
“ I never really thought about how their brain is affected by the information they learned, or how a simple conversation with them could affect the way they think every day,” Allen said.
And similar to clinical hours, they also complete practice teaching under the supervision of a mentor teacher. That’s part of what students seem to cherish the most.
“That's what inspired me to, like seeing them grow and like, needing help with their homework. I really liked that process of getting them from like, oh, so confusion, I don't know what I'm doing. Until like oh my God, I got this. If you feel that inspiration, towards like, wanting to become a teacher, you should really, really do it,” Decent said.
The teaching academy program is just one of the many curriculums offered at Western High to prepare them for college. The Teaching Academy program is also offered at Patterson High School.
Instructors said early exposure to the industry is key to them having a successful future in education.
