Week 5 Blog

There are four current jobs that I am looking at for future career opportunities. The first two that I am interested in are in my field of schooling, education. Both teaching jobs are located within the Orange County School District. I found these jobs through the Orange County School District website. This website has an area where potential employees can create an account, search for jobs, and essentially apply. Both jobs are for fourth grade teachers at the same elementary school. The requirements for the job are a Florida teacher's license indicating that I am qualified to teach fourth grade. I have my teaching license which states I can teach all subjects k-6, and english and math grades 7-12. I am qualified to teach these positions, but being hired would be based on my resume, my references, and an interview if offered one. I have currently applied for both positions, have mailed my cover letter and resume, and am waiting for phone calls or emails about the jobs. Both of these jobs are looking for a candidate with the required licensure, an exciting teaching philosophy, and a successful interview. The next two jobs are sided towards my entertainment career. One job is an equity dance position for holiday dancers at The Walt Disney World Resort. The other is for character performers at the Nickelodeon Hotel in Orlando. Both jobs require attendance at an audition, a resume listing any skills that are related to the jobs, and a professional head shot. The character performer audition also requires that you be within a certain height range. Both of these jobs are looking for a candidate that has a strong technical dance background, animation and performance abilities, and a certain look that is subjective to the employers.

My qualifications for the teaching jobs are that I am a graduate of USM with a degree in Elementary Education, I have applied for and successfully gotten my teaching license, and I have a great love for the profession that I am able to convey in an interview. My qualifications for the entertainment jobs are that I am a trained dancer and have prior performance experience with other companies. My resume and cover letter would express my desire to work for the mentioned companies and how I will benefit and enhance those companies. The resume would include my accomplishments in each field and include references that can attest to these accomplishments. In entertainment positions, the audition is where you show your skill set to the employers.

At this moment I really want to pursue the equity dance position with Walt Disney. I want this position because it is a seasonal position that can go along well with any other job that I may have at the time of hire. I also want this job so I can have an outlet to perform and share my love of performance with an audience and fellow coworkers. My resume and cover letter would share my skill set, my experience in dance, and my desire to enhance a company with my love of performance. My head shot would be a clear representation of what I look like. My audition would hopefully go as smoothly as possible and I would be able to show the employers that I have the skills that they are looking for.

http://corporate.disney.go.com/auditions/

http://www.orlandojobs.com/e_profilesdetail.asp?em_id=1298

https://www.ocps.net/Pages/default.aspx

Week 4 Blog

I chose the Mississippi Department of Education website for this blog. I frequent this website due to the fact that I am currently applying for my Mississippi teaching license. The process for applying for your license can be very intimidating, and this website is where everything takes place in regards to any topic on education in the state of Mississippi. mde.k12.ms.us is the website if you are interested in visiting it!

Dear Web Designer,

As a future educator in the state of Mississippi I visit this website quite often in search of important information that my success in my career relies on. First I would like to thank you for creating this website, as it is the central hub for educators, parents, students, and those with invested interest in the department of education here in Mississippi. The aspects of the website that I find amazing are the amounts of information that can be found and the variety of topics that this website presents. Not only can I find current events in education here in Mississippi and across the United States, but I can use this website as a teacher with regards to my license, renewal, teaching methods, and resources. The largest strength of this website is the information provided, hands down.

Even with the large amounts of information, the website is far from user friendly. The home page of the website can be very intimidating as the large amount of information is not very well organized. As a user, I almost do not know where to look first. I immediately noticed the search bar which is a great help when the initial fear hits. The search box allows the user to immediately find whatever it may be they are looking for without having to sift through unnecessary information. So my biggest piece of advice would be to organize the home page in a more user friendly way. Maybe through the use of color blocking, larger headlines, or removing non-important information the user may not be as intimidated upon entering the site.

Blog 2

With a degree in Elementary Education, I have come across and will continue to come across many articles that relate to my field, the studies, and the advances being made by educators across the world. One subject that I find to be very stimulating, and a subject that I particularly remember a specific article about is that of gifted learners. There are many views and opinions on gifted learners and this particular article gave an insight that I found to be both informative and intriguing.

Issues raised by the writer focus on the idea that not all gifted learners are "book smart." He speaks a lot about the idea of multiple intelligences defining the gifted student instead of the usual standard IQ tests that are used today to place students in gifted programs. The larger debate happening in this article is the question of what defines a gifted student. He claims that some students not receiving the benefits that come with a pull out gifted program are missing out on opportunities that could increase their learning potential.

The write of this article is an educator himself. An elementary teacher for many years turned college professor in an Education department a university. Through research of many studies, articles, and more, he has formulated this article with his beliefs on multiple intelligences and gifted programming.

This publication is intended for educators, students, and parents. Access is given to anyone wanting to read the article and is not restricted to certain professionals. A variety of topics regarding education is covered in this article. It does not focus on one subject or area of education.

Although not stated, I feel that this writer is compelled to create this piece due to personal experiences with his own students. He sees students that are gifted in other ways besides in the classroom. He feels that these students should also receive the benefits of a gifted pull out program. His purpose is to inform the masses that being gifted does not just mean being intelligent. Multiple intelligences range from being a gifted piano player to being a gifted memorizer. The purpose of this article is very evident through reading the writer's thoughts and beliefs on the topic. He backs up his persuasive writing with facts.

The intended audience is educators and parents. The views expressed in this article are meant for the audience to re-evaluate their own ideas of the definition of a gifted student. The writer's word choice and language is also very reader friendly. He does use some language that only those knowledgeable about education would know. This, however, does not distract from the message as a whole.

I feel that this writer strongly expressed the ideas that he wanted to get across. Through the presentation of facts, personal experiences, and true concern, the writer successfully reached me, and I am sure many others.

Week 1 Blog

Hi, my name is Nicholas Kade Clement. I am a recent graduate of The University of Southern Mississippi with a degree in Elementary Education with an emphasis on mathematics. I am currently seeking employment in many school districts across the South and hoping to get a math teaching job in the secondary level of education.

This week has been a very hectic week for me because I am currently moving to Orlando, Florida for a summer job. I have been employed by the Walt Disney Company for a few years as a dancer in shows and parades. Dance has always been a passion of mine and working for Disney is a great outlet for me to perform and share my passion with others.

I am currently working on another degree and taking this class will help me reach that goal. Writing has always been a great strength of mine and I also enjoy it very much. Writing in many forms I find narrative to be my strong point. Narrative writing can be very therapeutic and allow you to get your thoughts down on paper and analyze them in a more thorough way.

The only breakdown I remember as a writer was as a senior in high school. It was my first real serious writing assignment to write a term paper on Bette Davis. Getting all of my sources, writing note cards, citing sources, etc, became very overwhelming as a first time writer.

I hope to learn some things about writing that I may have missed along both my high school and college education. I am also hoping that this course will be a great refresher as I enter the job market and have to write philosophies of education, autobiographies, and job applications.

I am leaving Picayune, MS today at five and will be without internet until next Wednesday when it will be installed in my apartment in Orlando. I wish everyone luck with this course and can not wait to begin learning and growing as a writer!