1. Tammy Tunis Fundamentals of Educational Research

2. About me My name is Tammy Tunis and I am currently teaching 8th grade language arts at an intermediate school in Davenport, Iowa. I have been teaching at this school for the past eight years and thoroughly enjoy it! I have my Bachelor’s Degree in Elementary Education with endorsements in middle school and language arts.

3. Where do I see myself… I see myself in the classroom for many years, but eventually I would like to get into the curriculum writing aspect of education.

4. About my family Right now I am busy taking care of my two boys (ages 5 and 8) and am due to have a baby (girl) in January! I also have a wonderful husband and three step daughters (ages 14, 16, 21). Yes, I have my hands full!!! 5 months pregnant!!!

5. Family continued… My husband, Dave, and I will be celebrating our 1 year anniversary on September 29th! This last year has been very trying with the blended family and now adding another one to the mix! We trust in our faith in God and know that he will always guide us through any obstacles we encounter!

6. My Hobbies I enjoy scrapbooking, shopping, Pinterest, being a soccer mom, and traveling. I wish I had some time to do some extra curricular activities, but most of them have been put on hold for the time being! Zac- age 5 Ethan- age 8 with Bella, our dog

7. My Experiences… I think back to my education and there are some great memories! I enjoyed school (for the most part). I attended the same middle school that I currently teach at; my students think that’s pretty cool! I had many great teachers that stick in my mind.

8. Who Made an impact? My 4th & 6th grade teacher was Mrs. Metzger and she was a great teacher! She was very strict (which most kids hated), but I thought she was great! I will always remember when we were leaving 6th grade for middle school she played a song that means the world to me still today, Whitney Houston’s “Greatest Love of All.” Because she had most of the students for more than one year we made a special bond and she even had a huge picnic at her house in the country where we roasted hot dogs and played games. As she played this special song she went around to every student and whispered in their ear how they had made a difference in her life and wished us luck in our future.

9. Mrs. Metzger continued I wrote a letter to her as part of an assignment in high school and told her I had thought about becoming a teacher. She did reply and, once again, wished me luck! I didn’t pursue education directly out of high school, but I eventually did get my degree! Mrs. Metzger made a HUGE impact in my life!

10. My Future in Education For right now I would like to maintain my position in the classroom. I like working with students and like helping them learn and discover. Eventually, I would like to pursue a career in the education field, but more “behind the scenes.” I’m not sure exactly what I want to get into, but I think something along the lines of writing curriculum for the various grades. Right now I am involved heavily with aligning our curriculum to the Common Core and it has been a huge undertaking, but I enjoy working with others to make something this important happen.

11. “The mediocre teacher tells. The good teacher explains. The superior teacher demonstrates. The great teacher inspires.” ― William Arthur Ward. William Arthur Ward I feel that in the world of education, especially in the middle school setting, teachers have to inspire the students. We have all been in classrooms where the monotone teacher just tells you things and expects you to remember even the most boring facts. A good teacher will explain how something works. A superior teacher will demonstrate HOW something works with the actual parts so everybody can see it. A great teacher will inspire the students to try it themselves and come up with other solutions.

12. In the school I teach, 80%+ are on free or reduced lunches, which a result of a very low socioeconomic status for most students. A lot of the time my students don’t have proper meals and sadly, nobody at home that shows them the slightest bit of affection. I find it very easy to praise the students for the successes they make and believe that it goes a long way. I keep in touch with many students once they move on to high school and even still talk to several even though they have graduated. Some have told me that things I have said or taught them did inspire them and choose a career in education. That inspires me to be the best I can be!