Hello! My name is Kaitlyn Baker. I am a sophomore living at Penn State University Park, and I am originally from State College, Pa. I am an early childhood education major, and after graduating I will ideally be certified to teach pre-school through 4th grade. I would most like to teach 2nd or 3rd grade. I am considering a minor in fine arts, which will give me the opportunity to be an art teacher if I choose to do so. Art has always been a passion of mine, and I would love to put that to use. Music is another of my passions, and my friends and I spend a lot of our time travelling for concerts along the east coast. This course is required for my major, which is mainly why I am taking it, however I do have an interest in geography.
The issue I am most interested in focusing on is human effect on the environment. My family has always been environmentally conscious, and after having taken an environmental science class last year I am interested in gaining more knowledge about this particular issue. It has become increasingly obvious to me that we tend to abuse the society in which we live under the belief that our actions (the actions of ONE person) cannot make a difference, be that positive or negative. While making environmentally conscious changes in your life cannot solve the problem as a whole, it is a step in the right direction. Each and every one of us have the opportunity to influence the world in a positive way. On the same note, we can influence the world negatively with our actions. Until we begin making changes, our environment will continue to suffer.
Hello, Kaitlyn! Glad to see an aspiring educator among my classmates. My fiance is a high school teacher so I have a specific appreciation for the value of teachers and the role they lay in shaping the future. I chose to respond to your post because I think your ideas about a collective effort to address the concerns of sustainability and conservation will be valuable tools when you become a teacher. Hopefully, by the time you’re shaping the minds of your students, we will have moved in a concerted effort toward adding themes about conservation and our role in preserving the environment into the curriculum. If so, your background (including this class) will serve you well. More importantly, it will serve your students well and the planet they’ll be in charge of when they grow up. Welcome.
https://wp.me/p3RCAy-aTq
Hi Kaitlyn! My name is Katherine and I am a junior at Penn State University, University Park. Your blog post caught my attention as we both mentioned we were interested in learning more on the effects of human interactions on the environment. I chose to focus my discussion on the ways in which this is especially important with a presidential election coming up. You can check out what I had to say here, (http://sites.psu.edu/geog30/2016/01/18/module-1-getti…rning-activity/). I agree with your point in that we may not be able to see the impact of a single person on environmental changes, but rather it is the effort of society as a whole. The idea of “being environmentally conscious” is essential and as a future educator, you will eventually have the ability to educate the youth on how to be more environmentally conscious. Teaching the practice of sustainability from a young age may be what society needs to “un-do” this environmental obstacle.