Many high schools in Indiana offer graduation pathways to their students. These pathways allow students to explore their interests and decide on a career path for their futures. Some pathways offer dual credit classes that allow students to earn college credits while in high school.
One of these dual credit pathways at PHS is the Educational Pathway. Taught by Danielle Manship, this pathway consists of four different classes that teach skills needed in the classroom.
Manship has been teaching this pathway at PHS since 2013 and has had approximately 100 students go through her class since.
“The course I teach follows the IVY tech curriculum for the dual credit classes that align with the pathways. These courses are designed to give students a basic understanding of what it is like to be a teacher. Each student in the course is assigned a class at Throop where they work throughout the year and this gives real-life experience to the course,” said Manship.
Two recent program graduates, Amanda Bowles and Lara Brace, are pursuing education degrees at Indiana University Southeast and substitute teachers on campus.
Bowles initially chose to go through the education professions program because it gave her college credit for the pathway and allowed for hands-on interactions and one-on-one time with kids in a classroom setting.
“I’m currently pursuing my degree in Elementary Education at Indiana University Southeast and I’m in block 2, which means I’m halfway done,” said
Bowles.
Bowles would love to be a third or fourth-grade teacher at Throop Elementary.
Brace recommends the program to anyone interested in teaching.
“It is really fun classes and you get to hang out with kids for a period during education classes,” said Brace.
Brace also attends Indiana University Southeast to get her degree in Elementary Education.
This year, three seniors are in the program and plan to pursue careers in education: Arianna Cavazos, Harleigh Poe, and Kyra Thorlton.Thorlton is in her second year in the program and is only on campus to complete her education professions courses.“I chose to do the program because I knew I wanted to have a career dealing with kids and I wanted to experience what it was like going down to Throop to see what teaching was like,” said Thorlton. “I do plan to have a career in education because well, I enjoy helping kids learn new things and help them understand the world a little better.”
As of now, Thorlton has yet to make final decisions on her college plan.
“I’m not exactly 100% sure where I am going to go to school, but possibly online for the first part then maybe Ivy Tech or something like that,” said Thorlton.
In her experience at Throop, Thorlton learned a lot about classroom management.
“When someone wasn’t doing what they were told, they would have to move their number each time and then start to lose recess,” said Thorlton. Another thing would be to change the groups up every now and then when doing activities so they could continue to see
everyone in the class and get a chance to work with everyone.”
Cavazos is completing her third year in the program.
“I wanted to go through this program because I have always loved kids and wanted to teach,” said Cavazos.
Cavazos also plans to become an elementary teacher. She plans to pursue her degree at Vincennes University.
For her, the program is not all fun, and sometimes you have to be strict, but the positives outweigh the negatives.
“Some positives for me are building bonds with kids and watching them improve every day,” said Cavazos.
Even though Poe has only been in the program for a year, the year has significantly impacted her career planning.
“I chose to go through the education program because I hoped it would help me get a head in the game for my future,” said Poe.
Poe plans to attend Indiana University Southeast for elementary education.
“I plan to have a career in education because I hope to make a big influence on them in their learning and outside of learning,” said Poe.
Poe has learned ways to help students learn in the classroom to the best of their ability.
“My experience at Throop has helped me incredibly. I have learned some classroom management skills and how I can help kids in their learning environment,” said Poe.
Anyone interested in learning more about the education professions pathway offered at PHS can contact Danielle Manship or their guidance counselor.
