Currents in Education
York's own "Mrs. Bradburn" named among the nation's best teachers
By Jennifer L. Saunders
Coastal Ridge Elementary School teacher Deb Bradburn and her husband, Stacy, joined Sen. Olympia J. Snowe, R-Maine, in her Washington, D.C., office during their weeklong visit as part of Bradburn’s honor as a 2006 Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching winner.
Courtesy photo
Students in Coastal Ridge Elementary School’s Horizons Program came up with a special way to honor teacher Deb Bradburn’s selection as a 2006 Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching winner. In keeping with the theme of the award, which focuses on technology, engineering, math and science, they designed their own invention in the style of Rube Goldberg to deliver notes of congratulations to Bradburn. Here, Chandler Damrill shows off the invention.
Photos by Michele Freitag
Coastal Ridge Elementary School fourth-grade teacher Deb Bradburn is seen here accepting her 2006 Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching at a special ceremony last week in Washington, D.C.
Courtesy photo
YORK - Coastal Ridge Elementary School teacher Deb Bradburn has received the 2006 Presidential Award for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching.
Bradburn is Maine's one winner for the current year, and one of just 93 educators from across the state to receive the prestigious award. The award is administered through the National Science Foundation and is designed to recognize and reward outstanding teachers who serve as role models for their colleagues while encouraging talented individuals to enter and remain in the teaching field.
Along with the national recognition and an all-expense-paid trip to the nation's capital to receive the award, Bradburn and the members of the "Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching Class of 2006" each received a $10,000 award from the NSF.
Bradburn spent the past week in Washington, D.C., discussing the importance of math and science education with fellow teachers as well as government officials, and meeting with the president and first lady. It is an experience, she said, that she will never forget.
Returning to York and her fourth-grade students at Coastal Ridge on Monday, Bradburn said she felt recharged and ready to teach.
"They want you to do something, now that you've gotten that recognition, that's going to make a difference," Bradburn said. "It makes me want to work harder."
Getting back to her classroom, she did not want to focus on the trip itself but on the resulting inspiration to get back to teaching math and science.
"We were down to business. We had things to do!" she said. "Math is so dear to me. This really meant a lot."
Each year since it was established by Congress in 1983, the award has recognized outstanding teachers in the 50 states, Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia, the U.S. territories and all Department of Defense schools. In a citation given to Bradburn, President George W. Bush commended her for "embodying excellence in teaching, for devotion to the learning needs of the students and for upholding the high standards that exemplify American education at its finest."
That is a sentiment that has been echoed by Coastal Ridge Elementary School Principal Jane Stephenson and Superintendent of Schools Dr. Henry Scipione.
"She just has this passion and love for math that she passes on not only to her students, but to other teachers," Stephenson said, adding that for math and science teachers, "This is the nation's highest honor."
Scipione said the award is well deserved, referencing Bradburn's desire to share each honor with her colleagues and with other educators. In fact, in addition to her work with students, she has provided staff development in Everyday Mathematics to more than 15 schools in the state, was a Math Methods instructor at the University of Southern Maine and is a contributing author to the National Council of Teachers of Mathematics' "Navigations" series.
"We are absolutely delighted. We are just so proud of her," Scipione said. "She earns this honor herself for the work she does, but she brings this recognition to the York Schools."
As a teacher, Bradburn said she must find ways to engage her students and make math accessible to them. Innovative lesson plans with upbeat activities like "Mental Math" - a favorite among Bradburn's students - do just that by getting children to enjoy math.
"I teach my students sometimes we can find the answers to our questions, and other times we need to try again and keep searching," Bradburn explained. "Students will continue to try to learn if they feel their ideas and work are valued, even if they are not always correct."
The days in Washington, D.C., were very full, Bradburn said, with the schedule beginning around 6 a.m. and activities concluding as late as 11 p.m.
"This was my first visit to Washington, D.C., and I am thrilled," she said, describing meeting with government officials, visiting the White House and staying up late to share ideas and goals with other educators from across the country. "It was a learning experience in that I'm able to bring back some of the work and use it in the classroom."
She used, by way of an example, a National Science Foundation project that matches young students with a Cornell University program doing field studies in relation to bird counts. Other discussions included the importance of preparing students at the elementary level to take algebra at an earlier age, which Bradburn said she found to be very important as a member of the York School Department Math Committee.
And, too, she said, the educators met with officials to discuss how to inspire children to consider advanced study and job opportunities in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
"The part that will stay with, that surprised me, is how much respect I now have for people that put themselves out there to be part of our government," Bradburn said. "Although I don't always agree with the president or representatives or senators, they really are trying to represent the people and make decisions based on their own beliefs of what is best for the country."
Bradburn said the experience of meeting with the president was very powerful.
"You could see that he's a human being, just like we are. He was very grateful and very compassionate, and opened up the White House just for us," she said, adding he told the teachers that "we need to keep doing all that we can to make education stronger in our country, especially in math and science."
Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, met with Bradburn and her husband, Stacy, at her Washington, D.C., office and to welcome them on their first visit to the city, Bradburn said, adding she appreciated the senator's effort to seek her out and speak with her.
"This is a high honor and wonderful distinction, and I was happy to have had the opportunity to be with Deborah when she received this award," Snowe said. "It's great to know that we have high-quality teachers like Deborah in the classroom working to educate the next generation of American scientists and mathematicians."
And Bradburn has no intention of stopping. This summer, she and fellow Coastal Ridge Elementary School teacher Patty Raitto will be traveling to Switzerland to work with teachers there. Although that trip is not related to her NSF award, Bradburn said she will be bringing what she learned in Washington to her work in Switzerland.
"It was a great week, and it was wonderful meeting educators who are enthusiastic and so involved with teaching and learning in the fields of math and science," Bradburn said. "That was very inspirational."
Every year the competition alternates between teachers in grades K through 6 and grades 7 through 12, and for those who accept the nomination to be considered for the award, Bradburn said, it is a two-year review process.
"I brought back with me the thought that there are many teachers in my school and in my district that deserve this recognition," she said, adding her goal now is to nominate other educators who deserve the recognition.
To learn more about the award and the nomination process, visit http://www.paemst.org/.
