Jill Anderson, a seventh- and eighth-grade health education teacher at Norwalk Middle School in Norwalk, was taught by her mother, also an educator, that "it's easier to build a build than repair an adult." Convinced that she would make the greatest difference at the middle school level, Mrs. Anderson set about becoming a teacher who is sensitive to the turmoil of early adolescence and was formally trained to accommodate a wide spectrum of learning styles. Mrs. Anderson currently serves throughout Iowa as a facilitator for teachers interested in learning teaching strategies that correspond to the alternative learning styles of students. Supportive of a hands-on approach to learning, Mrs. Anderson has created a number of successful school and community events. Her students have baked cookie dough life-sized human skeletons and participated in the rescue operation of a simulated and authentically assessed school bus accident.
1997 Drake University, M.A.
