"I am currently a graduate student at Texas State University working on my master's degree in public history. Before attending Texas State, I studied at the University of Houston-Downtown where I received two bachelor's degrees; one in history and one in philosophy. While at the University of Houston-Downtown campus, I worked as an SI, or Supplemental Instruction Leader, for the University’s history department. As an SI, my job duties included sitting in on professors lectures and taking notes, and then using these notes to help create individualized study tools for the students of that particular class. Some of examples of this type of work would be creating games and interesting ways for students to learn and review the material covered in their specific class. As well, during this time, I also worked along side one of my professors to help create online lectures and tests and quizzes based off of those lectures.

Once I graduated, I moved to San Marcos to begin my master's degree. While here at Texas State, I have worked as an IA, or Instructional Assistant, for the history department. As an IA for Texas State, my job duties are quite similar to my time as an SI, but now also includes grading of quizzes, exams, and papers my students complete throughout the semester. This has allowed me to become familiar with many different styles of teaching and making sure that students are really learning the materials that are being presented to them in the classroom.

I have excelled in history for almost a decade now. From learning and passing all of the AP History tests in high school to mastering both lower level and upper level college history classes. As well my time as both an SI and now as an IA has provided me with the ability to not only understand the ways in which students struggle and get confused by the broad ideas of history, but also how to try to change this and help students learn in ways more suited to their needs." less...