Tappan Middle School

Ann Arbor Public Schools

Principal: Dr. Tyese Parnell Asst. Principals: Mr. Stephan Hogan, Mr. Rick Weiler

To whom it may concern:

It is my pleasure to recommend Doug McClure for teacher employment at your school or in your
school district. Doug McClure observed my classroom during the Winter Semester of 2021-2022
and student-taught for me during the Winter Semester of 2022-2023 at Tappan Middle School.
Mr. McClure taught 7th grade German for most of the fourteen weeks he taught at Tappan and
then assumed the responsibility to teach German 1 for six weeks. During my time working with
Mr. McClure, he demonstrated that he is a dedicated teacher and professional colleague who
was very intentional with building a cohesive classroom community and delivering instruction
in the target language. Mr. McClure would make an excellent addition to your teaching faculty.

Mr. McClure had observed my classroom at the beginning of 2022, and I was very pleased to
hear that he would be returning to be a teaching intern with me full-time in January of 2023.
From the beginning, I was impressed at how Doug took initiative in working with students and
the rapport he was able to cultivate with them. I learned he had previous experience working
with middle and high school students as a camp counselor, which was evident in his ability to
remain calm and collected when our middle school students were feeling particularly activated.
Doug was also highly skilled in delivering instruction in the target language while encouraging
student participation and providing consistent positive reinforcement. I was very impressed that
Doug was able to not only cultivate positive relationships between himself and students, but also
establish norms that led to students cultivating positive relationships with their peers. Students
felt very comfortable in his classroom and knew they were in a safe space to make mistakes in
order to develop their own proficiency in the target language.

In addition to nurturing a supportive classroom culture, Doug incorporated authentic German

resources in his instruction and was able to connect these texts to students’ prior knowledge on
a daily basis. He implemented a structured routine that allowed students to build proficiency in
all modes of communication, while assisting them in keeping track of their own progress. Doug’s
students frequently and enthusiastically participated in his German lessons. I feel Mr. McClure
made a positive contribution to my middle school program as a teaching intern and inspired
students to continue learning German next year. It’s also important to emphasize that the
COVID-19 pandemic has strongly exacerbated the existing inequities within our educational
systems. Doug remained conscientious of that and was sure to meet students’ diverse needs
while also providing them the opportunity to represent themselves and include their personal
interests in his lessons. He made himself available to meet with students outside of class time
and provide them with support and multiple ways to demonstrate mastery of our target skills.
Most importantly, he demonstrated a commitment to his students and their individual success.

I believe that Mr. McClure is a highly skilled, compassionate, and flexible teacher who goes
above and beyond to provide a quality education for all students. He was a pleasure to work with
and I felt comfortable leaving my students under his care. I believe he will provide you with the
same sense of comfort knowing that students are being effectively taught as well as cared for in
his classroom. Thank you for your consideration of this deserving candidate.

Sincerely,

Danielle Capitan
German teacher at Tappan Middle School
capitand@aaps.k12.mi.us
capitdan@umich.edu
586-322-0858