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Milken Educator Wade Whitehead Shares His Expertise about Great Teaching in July Blog for PBS Teachers

July 02, 2007

MILKEN EDUCATOR WADE WHITEHEAD
SHARES HIS EXPERTISE ABOUT GREAT TEACHING
IN JULY BLOG FOR PBS TEACHERS

Award-winning teacher discusses
benefits of shaping instruction to fit the child

SANTA MONICA, Calif. (July 2, 2007) – Throughout the month of July, educators will have the opportunity to exchange thoughts about differentiated instruction with Milken Educator Wade Whitehead (VA '00), this month's guest blogger on PBS Teachers' Media Infusion blog. Titled "One Size Fits Few: A Look at Individualized Learning," the blog (www.pbs.org/teachers/mediainfusion) will include ideas and multimedia resources that address instructional challenges facing every classroom teacher.

PBS Teachers (www.pbs.org/teachers) is a new Web site offering multimedia resources and professional development for America's preK-12 educators. The monthly "Media Infusion" blog, hosted by guest experts, showcases ideas for and encourages conversations about using media and technology in the classroom.

"When PBS Teachers approached me with this opportunity," said Wade, "I knew right away that I wanted the blog to be about great teaching. One student at a time, great teachers make the difference in our most successful schools."

Wade credits his many memorable teachers—most notably his parents, Ed and Betty Whitehead, themselves master public school educators—with helping him learn the value of curiosity and discovery at an early age. Great teachers "look at each child as a unique individual with gifts, curiosities, abilities and potential. They see the development of those strengths as their duty, and they apply themselves exclusively toward it," he wrote in Be A Teacher, a recently released book he coauthored with fellow Milken Educator Award-winning teachers in Virginia.

"PBS Teachers provides an incredible resource for educators, families, and students themselves, where users can interact over cutting-edge resources, timeless truths, and contemporary questions," Wade added. "Media Infusion will have a sure and significant impact on the quality of teaching at all levels in schools across the country."

A product of Virginia's public schools, Wade teaches fifth grade at Crystal Spring School in Roanoke, Virginia. He holds degrees in anthropology and elementary education from the College of William & Mary and has received numerous professional recognitions and teaching awards, including the Milken Family Foundation National Educator Award and the McGlothlin Foundation Award for Teaching Excellence. A National Board Certified teacher, Wade is a former member of the USA Today ALL-USA Teacher Team and is a former Roanoke City Public Schools Teacher of the Year. He operates a Web site at www.wadewhitehead.com.

Over the years, Wade has advised the Virginia and U.S. Departments of Education in a number of roles and has spoken to school and family groups across the country about his approach to teaching and learning. As chair of the Virginia Milken Educator Network, he worked to create and implement the Teachers of Promise Institute, which recognizes top student teachers from Virginia's 37 college and university schools of education.

 

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