Through JASS, teacher candidates go online to apply for a teaching job, get hired and receive their own classes of virtual students. They are tasked with getting to know the students in their classrooms and develop appropriate learning environments, including plans to specifically support their Jabulani students and families.<\/p>\n
McAllister said the platform works much like a video game; as participants \u201clevel up\u201d in their competencies, they are rewarded with more information that provides deeper insight into an individual student\u2019s background and circumstances. The challenges presented through the simulation are based on research revealing challenges facing teachers and students in classrooms throughout Arizona.<\/p>\n
\u201cThrough the simulation, teachers will learn to see an educational concept through multiple lenses. For example, a Hopi student\u2019s relationship to the concept of corn and the growing process may be different from a Caucasian child\u2019s,\u201d McAllister said.<\/p>\n
\u201cOr we could develop a scenario, for example, in which a second-grader has two dads\u2014one stays at home and one works in construction\u2014and the other kids are curious about this. What could the teacher do to prepare the classroom in subtle ways? What kind of books and pictures are they using to normalize the classroom? Are they in a virtual school that bans LGBTQ literature? How will they work with the principal and the families? Simulating these cases gives teachers a visceral experience and helps build confidence to be more prepared in a real setting.\u201d<\/p>\n
McAllister said she discovered the need for such diversity training about 10 years ago.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was frustrated with the consistent problem of children of color not performing well in schools. I thought, \u2018What if we simulate some of these activities to teach new teachers to help these children feel more comfortable in the learning environment?\u2019 We need to create some space for a community of learners to try and figure this out together, and simulations have been known to help with that.\u201d<\/p>\n
The online platform is a series of virtual experiences to help teachers practice their thinking, she says.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur future teachers will be student teaching during a semester and will have their own classrooms. But with JASS, they will be set up with profiles of children in their classroom. Those virtual students will provide a learning context for our future teachers to discuss and consider how to best serve them. Jabulani is a place for learning and growth where teacher candidates can make mistakes.\u201d<\/p>\n
Turning JASS into a commercially viable product<\/strong><\/h3>\nMeanwhile, Eck Doerry<\/strong>, a professor in NAU\u2019s School of Informatics, Computing, and Cyber Systems, is helping turn McAllister\u2019s virtual Jabulani School into a product that can help teachers everywhere better understand the complexity of today\u2019s classrooms and earn diversity training certification. The product that NAU hopes to bring to market provides two components: a virtual classroom database of students and a series of problem-based learning modules.<\/p>\n\u201cThrough JASS, we have the intellectual property,\u201d McAllister said. \u201cWhat we are looking for now is the funding to have an educational module with a prototype platform up and running.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are teachers in practice and colleges of education that need certification in diversity management,\u201d Doerry said. \u201cWhy not turn Jabulani into a classroom marketplace, make it like the Amazon Marketplace of diversity training? Essentially, you have your clients, who are teachers and students in education, and a teacher training program. They could sign up at this site and pay their tuition. Teachers who achieve this level of training could become Jabulani certified across the nation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doerry sees a future where a core of certified Jabulani instructors could be connected with the students going through the curricula and get paid as consultants.<\/p>\n
McAllister is hoping to create a community of teachers to serve as mentors and students who will become teachers to help all children have positive experiences in this school.<\/p>\n
McAllister and Doerry are working with the\u00a0NAU Innovations<\/a>\u00a0team\u2014the university\u2019s technology transfer arm\u2014to commercialize the simulation as intellectual property. The project is currently in a piloting phase.<\/p>\nIf you are a member of NAU faculty or staff, or an NAU student developing any type of technology that may qualify as intellectual property, contact NAU Innovations at\u00a0nauinnovations@nau.edu<\/a>\u00a0or call (928) 523-4620 to discuss how you can protect your intellectual property and possibly develop it for commercialization. Learn more on the NAU Innovations\u00a0website<\/a>.<\/p>\n
\u201cThrough JASS, we have the intellectual property,\u201d McAllister said. \u201cWhat we are looking for now is the funding to have an educational module with a prototype platform up and running.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are teachers in practice and colleges of education that need certification in diversity management,\u201d Doerry said. \u201cWhy not turn Jabulani into a classroom marketplace, make it like the Amazon Marketplace of diversity training? Essentially, you have your clients, who are teachers and students in education, and a teacher training program. They could sign up at this site and pay their tuition. Teachers who achieve this level of training could become Jabulani certified across the nation.\u201d<\/p>\n
Doerry sees a future where a core of certified Jabulani instructors could be connected with the students going through the curricula and get paid as consultants.<\/p>\n
McAllister is hoping to create a community of teachers to serve as mentors and students who will become teachers to help all children have positive experiences in this school.<\/p>\n
McAllister and Doerry are working with the\u00a0NAU Innovations<\/a>\u00a0team\u2014the university\u2019s technology transfer arm\u2014to commercialize the simulation as intellectual property. The project is currently in a piloting phase.<\/p>\n If you are a member of NAU faculty or staff, or an NAU student developing any type of technology that may qualify as intellectual property, contact NAU Innovations at\u00a0nauinnovations@nau.edu<\/a>\u00a0or call (928) 523-4620 to discuss how you can protect your intellectual property and possibly develop it for commercialization. Learn more on the NAU Innovations\u00a0website<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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