Summer course puts teachers to the test
Sporting a mohawk and an Aerosmith T-shirt, Josh Locklear didn’t stray from his physics book and worksheets that lay on a desk at Del Sol High School on Thursday.
But Locklear isn’t a Del Sol student or even a teenager for that matter. The 26-year-old is an Advanced Placement physics instructor at Mojave High School.
"The roles are reversed," Locklear said. "We’ve been working hard the past few days so we know what students have to do to prepare for tests."
Locklear was one of 394 teachers from around the country who took part in the Silver State AP Summer Institute, a four-day program that ended Thursday at Del Sol.
The program helps teachers who are instructing AP courses learn up-to-date teaching techniques in their subjects while utilizing the latest textbooks during seminars conducted by certified instructors. It is in its second year of being directed by education officials in Nevada.
The Clark County School District conducted the program in coordination with the state’s Southern Nevada Regional Professional Development Program, which assists teachers in obtaining extra training in their subject areas.
The summer institute is approved by the College Board, a nonprofit organization in New York City that publishes college preparatory exams for AP courses taught in high schools. The board also administers SATs and PSATs, which are college entrance tests.
Most of the 302 AP teachers from Nevada who registered for the summer institute teach in Clark County. Nevada teachers were allowed to waive the registration fee, but out-of-state teachers had to pay $595 in order to participate.
Karen Scott, a physics teacher from Columbus, Ohio, said that since Monday, she has learned more than a dozen new laboratory experiments she can incorporate into lessons for her students.
Scott said being hands-on with students is the best way to teach physics.
She said being around other physics teachers was beneficial.
"I need to place myself with other AP teachers from around the country in order to learn and share ideas on how to run an AP course," Scott said.
The summer institute offered training sessions for instructors in 20 AP subjects ranging from world history and foreign languages to studio art.
Jennifer Peterson, a K-12 math coordinator with the school district, said the training teachers received will ultimately benefit students.
"When teachers are comfortable with their content, they’re confident and provide better instruction," Peterson said. "And their students perform better."