Drake ST UNIVERSITY vnvarnat vena ct/ie Dr. Jerid Kruse, PHD Drake Uriversity~ School of Education 3206 Univesity Ave Des Moines, 1A 50311 ‘Cell Phone: 712-574-9221 ‘To whom it may concer: {am excited to write this ener of recommendation for Colin Sebach. When sting down to write this eter I ‘seriously contemplated making the letter one sentence long and simply saying, “Colin Seebach isthe best, -preserviufstudent teacher with whom I have ever had the pleasure of working”. While this statement is ‘absolutely true, | know persons looking to hire Colin may desir some explanation. ‘Colin was my advsee and student in several of my courses at Drake University including: Inquiry and the ‘Natures ef Science, Technology, & Engineering (STEM 174), Secondary Science Methods (EDUC 125), and Methods of Engineering and Technologies! Design (STEM 120). Colin's extensive coursework in STEM ‘education gives him a strong background for work with his future students. During these courses, Colin, along wih his fellow students, worked to develop a list of goals for students, understand how learning ‘theories can inform their practice, how to assess both their students and themselves, and how to implement ‘effective classroom management. During methods courses, I observed Colin's teaching and he videotaped himself teaching students. These observations and videos demonstrated his efforts to implement research-based teaching, and his reflection upon there lessons illustrated his deep understanding of both students and teaching, As with all beginning ‘teachers, Clin has room for improvement. Yet, his ability to deeply reflect upon znd make plan to improve his pracice give me tremendous confidence that Colin will quickly become the tacher he wants to be and will continue to improve his practice throughout his carer. In addin to coursework, | had the unique opportunity to work with Colin closely during a 3-week physical science course he cotaught with me. During this course, Colin and I met to plan lessons, evaluate students, tnd reflect upon the course. Con’ interaction with students improved tremendously during this time giving him a head start on his stdent teaching. Indeed, having abserved Colin in his student teaching 1am amazed at his abity to work with secondary students, CColn’s understanding of and dedication to the teaching profesion is exemplificd by his summer research and presentations atthe Iowa Science Teachers Section, the Association for Science Teacher Education, and the National Science Teachers Association. His attendance and presenting at these conferences show Colin's leadershin potential through secking opportunites to share his experiences and ‘eam from other teachers’ perspectives. Having his presentations accepted at precttioner and research conferences demonsraes the high quaty of his work. |When tesching in the K-12 system, [onged for collegues such as Colin who seck out meaningful dialogue about teaching, Rarely does a eter of recommendation clearly articulate all hat can be said about a candidate, hope you will contact meso | might beter communicate my extremely high regard fr Colin Seebach Ze — Jofid Kruse