David P. BenzDavid P. Benz At Queens Academy High SchoolAt Queens Academy High School

David P. BenzDavid P. Benz At Queens Academy High SchoolAt Queens Academy High School

Background and Background and Educational ObjectivesEducational Objectives

David BenzTeaching Background

• I started teaching SCUBA diving classes for national certification at the YMCA while I was a senior in high school.

• In 15 years, I certified over 1000 divers at levels from beginning to pre-instructor.

• My favorite was a certification in Niagara River, High-Speed diving.

Diving Experiences• I have had the opportunity to

SCUBA dive in several Great Lakes, New York’s Finger Lakes, quarries throughout the northeast U.S. & Canada, as well as in the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea.– Fossil collection in limestone quarries

is a favorite diving activity.

Downhill Skiing Instruction

• In 1985, I took a skiing-instructors class and began teaching many SCUBA divers to ski.

• I have been fortunate to ski in the Adirondack Mountains in New York, Colorado and Canadian Rocky Mountains, and the Fitzsimmons Range in British Columbia.

Photography Instruction

• I started teaching underwater photography for specialty certification in 1978.

• Both SCUBA diving and photography require that you keep track of many variables simultaneously. – Merging the 2 was exciting and fun!

Photography Instruction

• I taught basic photography for many years.

• A favorite class was “better pictures with disposable cameras” because it taught people how to view the subject artistically instead of concentrating on the mechanics of using a complex camera.

Public School Teaching• I began teaching in public school

during an undergraduate internship at Kensington High School.– I taught Earth Science in one of

Buffalo’s most troubled high schools as students prepared for their Regent’s exams.

Student Teaching• My first student teaching

assignment was at Niagara Falls High School; the only high school in the city.– I taught Physics at the regular and

honors levels and a class in Advanced-Placement Physics that was offered for college credit.

Lancaster Middle• My next assignment was 7th grade

physical science.• The school was not able to offer

lab activities to students, but I provided a wealth of demonstrations to my students.

New York City• I began teaching in New York in

September 2004.• I have been teaching Earth

Science, Physics, GED Science, and Regent’s Review classes at Queens Academy High School.

New York Schools• I feel privileged to walk into my

classroom each day, and my goal is to generate enthusiasm for science and learning.

• Instruction is Standards-based, student-centered, and follows the NYS Core Curriculum.

Educational Objectives• My first and foremost objective is

to develop literacy across the curriculum.

• I make an effort to improve every student’s literacy skills.– My Master’s in “Teaching English to

Speakers of Other Languages” (TESOL) helps facilitate this goal.

Educational Objectives• I develop critical thinking skills in

my students.• I need them to look at something

and ask why? or how?– More importantly, they need to be able

to perform an investigation of their own design and answer their questions.

Educational Objectives• My students will be better

prepared for life after high school.– They will have the skills to help them

perform in a career of their choosing.– Literacy is vitally important to this

goal.

Educational Objectives• My students will feel safe and

respected in my classroom.• Every student is encouraged to

participate to their highest level.• A student-centered learning

environment is created with myself as the guide.

Educational Objectives• Cultural diversity is accepted and

embraced as an opportunity for greater learning and understanding.

• Every culture has something to offer to our learning of science.

Educational Objectives• Gender bias is not permitted in my

classroom.– In coed science classes, boys will

often lead, while girls observe and follow.

– I insist that every student participates fully.

Educational Objectives• Science instruction includes: literacy,

mathematics, history, technology, social studies and even philosophy in addition to the science curriculum.

• A good science teacher includes something from all the subject areas.

The future• I will continue to teach in the

largest school district in the U.S as long as I am able to bring a fresh approach to science topics each time I cover them.