Palisades Elementary Teacher Returns from Space Camp
For the students in Lawrence Ramos’ class, heading back to school next week will be an out-of-this-world experience. With the first day of class just around the corner, Ramos is busy transforming his classroom at Palisades Elementary into an outer space escape inspired by his recent stay at Space Camp for Educators.
The program, hosted by Honeywell Systems at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center in Huntsville, Alabama is an opportunity granted to selected teachers who apply from all over the world.
Ramos, who is about to begin his third year teaching special needs students in second through fifth grade at Pali Elementary, was among 200 other educators who participated in classroom, laboratory and field-training exercises, including simulated astronaut-training exercises, high-performance jet simulations, scenario-based space missions and flying programs.
“You make the most of these opportunities by being open to experiencing new things. You can’t be hesitant. You have to engage,” Ramos said of the exercises, which he related to his experience with special needs students.
“For many of the students in special education, they have a specific interest. I respect those interests – it can be part of their disability – but I’ve learned that if I can teach them and engage with them, they’re very open to new things,” he added.
Similarly, Ramos found that each teacher at camp possessed unique strengths and interests as well, but it was overcoming differences and perceived impossibilities that enriched the experience.
“This camp reinforced the idea that anything is possible. Everything we once thought impossible about space, we have attained. We have sent man to space. We made it happen. I want my students to know that anything is possible if they are willing to work hard to achieve it,” he said.
Working in teams to achieve a multitude of mission objectives, Ramos and his peers conducted experiments in the lab, repaired satellites and added a module to the International Space Station – all designed to improve their ability to teach math and science in their own classrooms.
During camp, teachers from 24 different countries participated in 45 hours of training focused specifically on science and space exploration that give them new and unique lessons to take back to students. The exercises and simulations provided Ramos with new teaching practices aligned with Core STEM subjects.
“With the new Common Core standards and assessments, it’s very challenging for special education students. It’s necessary, but many of my students don’t respond well to that type of assessment, and it limits what they think they can do,” he said. “They have so many intelligences and talents that aren’t assessable in the same way. But it’s also a chance to remind them that anything is possible – even when it’s challenging.”
Ramos knows something of overcoming challenges. Growing up in Manila, Philippines, he studied pre-med in undergrad and had begun medical school when his mother’s death led him to accept a teaching job in order to support his younger siblings.
“It turned out that I loved teaching. In many ways, my background in medicine made me a more effective teacher, especially in science, because I had that experience,” Ramos said. “It’s about giving these children a chance through their teacher.”
He came to the States as an exchange teacher in 2006 and taught in downtown Los Angeles for five years before making his move to the Palisades where the opportunity to attend Space Camp for Educators was received with extreme gratitude.
“I was thrilled at the opportunity for more training. The experience was overwhelming for me; coming from a third-world country where we don’t have access to programs like this,” he said. “We were so warmly accommodated and I was working alongside teachers from all over the world. It was very exciting.”
It is clear the excitement from camp will fuel Ramos well into the beginning of the academic year, beginning next week. Eager to share what he learned with the faculty and students, Ramos admits the experience renewed his passion for teaching and his hope to make an impact on his students.
“I desire to make teaching very personal, relevant and practical. This is the best reason why I stayed in this profession. I love the dynamism that is teaching. It changes, while it holds firmly on the basic principles of the human brain, how we learn and some societal expectations that we contribute to the betterment of this world,” he said. “It is very instrumental in affecting positive changes in people and the society. I can never get enough of these experiences that teaching provides.”
Visit educators.honeywell.com for more information.
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