Middle grades major Charlcy Carpenter, from Lawndale, North Carolina, received the North Carolina Council of Teachers of Mathematics (NCCTM) Western Region Outstanding Mathematics Education Student Award at the NCCTM Annual Conference on November 1, 2018, in Greensboro, NC. She was nominated by Drs. Debbie Crocker and Betty Long, professors in Appalachian’s Department of Mathematical Sciences.
NCCTM recognizes outstanding mathematics education students at colleges and universities across the state. Each college and university with a teacher education program may nominate one rising junior or senior working towards elementary, middle school, or secondary certification. The NCCTM Special Awards Committee reviews the materials submitted and selects one awardee in each of the three regions (western, central, and eastern) of the state. The winning students are invited to attend the State Mathematics Conference in the fall where they are recognized and receive their award.
Receiving this award was an honor for Carpenter.
"I was able to represent the RCOE, the math department, Appalachian, and my family through an amazing organization," she said.
She noted that NCCTM is an organization that has fostered a lot of her growth as a pre-service teacher, and their support was evident in this award.
The letters of support for Carpenter's award nomination highlight not only her mathematical skills in the classroom but also her leadership and interpersonal skills with her classmates and her drive to be the best teacher she can be.
Excerpts note:
- Charlcy has a subtle leadership style within groups, [where she] assessed and utilized the strengths of all group members. I loved how she used questions when working on problems with other individuals.
- Charlcy is committed to becoming an effective middle school mathematics teacher, and she has the qualities needed to become a really good teacher. She looks for opportunities to get experience in the middle school classroom. She realizes that these hands-on experiences are invaluable to a pre-service teacher, and she never turns down the opportunity to get into a middle school classroom to observe and talk with the teachers.
Carpenter is impacting education as a student by taking advantage of professional networks and interactions with students and sharing her passion and point-of-view as a current pre-service educator. Her teachosophy is, "Students won't care how much you know until they know how much you care."
"Students won't care how much you know until they know how much you care."
In addition, Carpenter is inspired by her teacher, Kathy Beam, who demonstrated the love she had for her students in everything she did.
She chose Appalachian because, "App State felt like home from the very first visit, and I knew the RCOE would foster my passion for teaching." Her advice to prospective students who want to be teachers: "Take advantage of the networks that Appalachian offers you. Don't be afraid to reach out to professionals in education and ask questions!"
Carpenter is anticipated to graduate May 2019. Her plans after graduation are to be a middle grades teacher, focused on language arts and mathematics.
Charlcy Carpenter Named Recipient of the North Carolina Council of Teachers of Mathematics Western Region Outstanding Mathematics Education Student Award
