Nov. 20, 2024

This paid piece is sponsored by Dakota State University.

November highlights education all month, with observances for American Education Week, International Education Week and Distance Learning Week.

At Dakota State University, education is a focus every day of every week, particularly in the university’s College of Education & Human Performance. But the awareness created through these annual events serves as an opportunity for young people to consider the compelling reasons why they should become teachers, said Dr. David De Jong, dean of the COE&HP.

1. Influence and inspire future generations

Teaching gives young people the power to make a lasting impact on students’ lives. A teacher’s encouragement can shape a student’s self-belief, resilience and ambition for years to come.

2. Continuous learning and personal growth

Teaching is a profession of constant learning. Teaching challenges educators to stay adaptable and curious, cultivating lifelong learning habits that benefit both themselves and their students.

3. Rewarding and purposeful career

Teaching is inherently fulfilling because it’s centered around helping others. Seeing students achieve, grow and discover their potential gives teachers a strong sense of purpose.

Dr. David De Jong is dean of the College of Education & Human Performance at DSU and director of the South Dakota Teacher Apprenticeship Program.

De Jong also sees now as a perfect time to turn that focus into a career in education.

“I believe this is the best time in the history of the world to become a teacher because we know more than ever what works and does not work in education,” he said.

Dakota State faculty are leading the charge to find and share those best practices, many of which involve ways to implement emerging technologies.

“At DSU, we teach future teachers how to incorporate technologies such as artificial intelligence and simulations into their learning environment,” he said.

Instructor Betsy Schamber has recently written on impacting education with AI.  

The college also is involved in curriculum development. DSU staff and faculty have been working with the South Dakota Department of Education to create K-8 computer science standards, which are posted now for public comment. If adopted next spring, the K-8 guidelines could be implemented in the 2025-26 school year, with adoption in 2026-27.

To better prepare teachers to use these standards, Dakota State has added a computer science and cyber education specialization in the Master of Science in Education Technology degree program. Courses in this specialization include cyber leadership and classes such as AI for teachers and ethics for teachers. This specialization will give all educators the confidence and skills to use technology in the classroom so they can enhance their students’ learning. It also prepares them to be able to teach dual credit courses in computer science education.

Kandy Flowers is the first graduate of the South Dakota Teacher Apprenticeship Program and is teaching pre-kindergarten in Wessington Springs.

Other DSU faculty and staff share their research and expertise with colleagues at conferences and in professional publications:

• Instructor Betsy Schamber is second author on a manuscript accepted by the peer-reviewed journal Impacting Education: Journal on Transforming Professional Practice. The manuscript is titled “Dissertation 2.0: An Action Research Study on Adapting with AI.”
• Associate professor Kevin Smith received a STEM grant from South Dakota EPSCoR and South Dakota Biotech to create an outreach program to prepare students for potential STEM careers by helping them understand what mathematics truly is and develop a positive math identity. He also presented at the Iowa Council Teachers of Mathematics annual conference on creating a positive mindset about mathematics.
• De Jong presented two articles on apprenticeship pathways this fall at the National Forum to Advance Rural Education Conference in Georgia, attended by over 700 rural teachers, leaders and professors. He collaborated with Laurie Matzke, assistant state superintendent of education in North Dakota.

These ideas come at a critical time for the field, when educator shortages are bringing challenges for school districts nationwide.

To address this shortfall in South Dakota, De Jong and the DSU team have been developing and implementing the South Dakota Teacher Apprenticeship Pathway program. SD TAP allows paraprofessionals to take college classes to complete their degrees while they continue working in the classroom. Those looking to earn elementary and special education degrees take their courses at Dakota State; secondary education students enroll in the SD TAP program at Northern State University.

These 78 potential teachers who began the pilot program at DSU in fall 2023 are motivated learners. They are averaging a GPA of higher than 3.5 and are taking more than 13 credits per semester on average. There are 55 TAP students completing their Level III Field Experience, and 54 TAP students are on track to complete their student teaching experience in May. Year two began in fall 2024 with 79 new students, totaling 157 for the two years of the program.

At the South Dakota Department of Labor and Regulation’s Apprenticeship Summit on Nov. 19, De Jong served as master of ceremonies. At this event, Dakota State University was given a prestigious award, the Apprenticeship Legacy Award. DSU is the largest sponsor of apprenticeships in the state with 157 active apprentices, followed by large electrician and plumber apprenticeships.

For their efforts with SD TAP, the college also was named the True Trojan Team of the Year for 2024. This Dakota State award recognizes a team that exemplifies collaboration, cooperation, communication, trust and respect. By creating this life-changing opportunity for paraprofessionals across South Dakota, “our friends in (the College of Education & Human Performance) have set a standard for how to turn a crisis into a win,” the nomination letter read.

This program helps students accomplish wins of their own by reaching personal goals to become teachers. The program’s first graduate, Kandy Flowers, earned her DSU education degree in May and is teaching pre-kindergarten in Wessington Springs.